Letters to the Editor is a periodic feature. We welcome all comments and will publish a selection. We edit for length and clarity and require full names.
Don’t Let Hospital Billing Ruin American Lives
Your recent piece “Baffling. Frustrating. Frightening. What It’s Like To Be Sued Over Medical Debt” (June 1) adds to a growing breadth of firsthand patient experiences caused by undue medical debt. These patients understand they need to pay for their care but instead are strapped with baffling medical bills and no direct way to get assistance. That’s exactly what these hospital and insurer billing practices do: make it difficult for patients to understand what they are being charged for, leaving them to navigate uncertainty and frustration while trying to determine what they actually owe.
The National Consumers League has heard from patients and their caregivers who have daunting stories. Patients shouldn’t be at the mercy of unfair hospital practices or be forced to choose between vital medical treatments and other necessities because they’re priced out — but this is happening every day. NCL polling found that medical debt has affected most U.S. adults, with nearly half incurring this debt after receiving a “surprise” bill from a hospital or provider. These bills not only risk patients’ livelihoods and upend their financial stability, but they also ruin lives. When faced with medical debt, more than half of surveyed adults said they skipped future treatments or drained their savings.
