Maine Senate advances Sen. Bailey bill to strengthen Maine’s landmark medical debt law

The bill builds on the Senator’s law that bans medical debt from consumer reports.

AUGUSTA — On Tuesday, March 17, the Maine Senate gave initial, bipartisan support to a bill from Sen. Donna Bailey, D-Saco. LD 2129, “An Act to Strengthen Consumer Protections by Prohibiting Liens on Principal Residences and Wage Garnishments for Medical Debt,” seeks to expand protections for Mainers with medical debt.

“While we need to do more to address the reality of medical debt itself, we can take action now to reduce some of its harmful impact on Mainers,” said Sen. Bailey. “As a cancer survivor, I know how critical it is that people focus on their healing and recovery — without the added worry of how much medical debt can ruin other parts of their life. I am hopeful that my colleagues will continue to support this bill so that we can provide a little peace of mind to Mainers with — or facing the prospect of — medical debt.”

Currently, a debt collection agency can sue a person with medical debt and, with a court order, recover money by placing a lien on the person’s home or garnishing their wages. Several states, including Delaware, New York, North Carolina and Virginia, already have the strongest protections for patients with medical debt from having liens placed on their homes or having their wages garnished.

In testimony in support of the bill, the American Cancer Society Center Cancer Action Network and Blood Cancer United spoke to the particularly devastating impact of medical debt on cancer patients and survivors: “Cancer patients are especially vulnerable. Nearly half of cancer survivors report carrying medical debt related to their treatment due to repeated care, high cost-sharing and lost wages. Medical debt is not a reflection of personal failure but rather a systemic problem in our health care system.

Addressing medical debt is crucial to accomplishing our collective mission of ending cancer as we know it. Individuals must first have access to quality, affordable health insurance coverage, and policies are also needed to reduce the impact of medical debt on individuals and families.”

LD 2129 will face additional votes in the Senate and House.

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