Sen. Bailey introduces bill strengthening Maine’s landmark medical debt law

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

AUGUSTA — On Tuesday, Feb. 17, Sen. Donna Bailey, D-Saco, introduced legislation to expand protections for Mainers with medical debt. LD 2129, “An Act to Strengthen Consumer Protections by Prohibiting Liens on Principal Residences and Wage Garnishments for Medical Debt,” was the subject of a public hearing before the Legislature’s Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services Committee, which the Senator chairs.

“Last year, I was proud to sponsor the bill — now law — that keeps medical debt off consumer credit reports,” said Sen. Bailey. “While I am proud of the progress we made on reducing the negative impact of medical debt on Mainers, there is more work to do. Just like with consumer credit reports, a medical emergency should not result in lifelong financial harm through losing a home or wages. Here in Maine, where medical debt is a widespread and growing problem, we can take this action to help lower costs and build stronger communities.”

Currently, a debt collection agency can sue a person with medical debt and, with a court order, recover the money owed to them by placing a lien on the person’s home or garnishing their wages. New York is the only state to protect 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.”

In the coming weeks, the Committee will conduct a work session on LD 2129.

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