More than 352,000 Arizonans have had medical debt erased in the past year under an initiative from Gov. Katie Hobbs’s office.
Hobbs announced last year that her office would direct up to $30 million in federal pandemic relief funding to a nonprofit that buys medical debt for pennies on the dollar and cancels the balance. The goal was to relieve up to $2 billion owed by Arizonans.
The Hobbs administration announced Wednesday it has so far allocated about $2 million to the organization Undue Medical Debt (formerly known as RIP Medical Debt), which has wiped out about $429 million worth of debt in the state.
Beneficiaries don’t need to apply for the program, they just need to owe at least 5% of their annual income for medical bills or earn below 400% of the Federal Poverty Level, which is about $128,600 for a family of four.
If someone’s debt is erased through the program, they will receive a notice in the mail from Undue Medical Debt.
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