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Medical Debt Protection: New Collection Rules and Transparency

This act introduces new rules for medical debt collection to protect patients. It limits aggressive collection actions, ensures access to debt information, and sets interest rate caps. The goal is to help citizens manage medical debt and increase transparency in the healthcare system.
Key points
Prohibits medical debt collection while a health insurance appeal is pending.
Healthcare entities must assess patient eligibility for financial assistance before starting collection.
Medical debt collection can only begin 180 days after the initial bill is sent.
Patients will receive easy-to-understand itemized statements and payment receipts.
Interest rates on medical debt are capped at 5% annually or a lower federal rate plus 2%.
A public database will be established to track medical debt collection practices and demographic data.
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Status: Expired
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Additional Information
Print number: 117_S_5150
Sponsor: Sen. Murphy, Christopher [D-CT]
Process start date: 2022-11-30
System Note: Lustra is free, publicly auditable civic infrastructure — full source code available on GitHub. You are reading sterilized legislative data, processed by our radical neutrality engine to strip political spin and retain factual mechanics. We process only official government data. Original documents remain the authoritative source—always verify them if you can.
Summarized by: gemini-2.5-flash-preview-05-20
Source data: api.congress.gov
AI work logs for this document launch

OFFICIAL LEGAL TITLE

Strengthening Consumer Protections and Medical Debt Transparency Act

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is the official ID of this bill?

The official print number for this legislation is 117_S_5150.

Which chamber initiated this legislation?

This legislation was initiated in the Senate.

When did the legislative process begin?

The process officially started on 2022-11-30.

What are the main provisions?

Key points include:

  • Prohibits medical debt collection while a health insurance appeal is pending.
  • Healthcare entities must assess patient eligibility for financial assistance before starting collection.
  • Medical debt collection can only begin 180 days after the initial bill is sent.
  • Patients will receive easy-to-understand itemized statements and payment receipts.
  • Interest rates on medical debt are capped at 5% annually or a lower federal rate plus 2%.
  • A public database will be established to track medical debt collection practices and demographic data.
What is the specific legal status?

The current status is Expired.

Where can I read the full text of this legislation?

The full official text is available at: View full text

Who is the primary sponsor?

The primary sponsor is Sen. Murphy, Christopher [D-CT].

What is the latest detailed status?

The latest detailed status is: Introduced in Senate

Is this summary verified?

Yes. This content was analyzed by AI and verified by the Lustra Judge System on 2025-12-29.

What is the impact of this bill?

We don't know—that is up to you to decide. Summarizing raw data with AI is fundamentally different from predicting socio-economic outcomes. As of 2026, we believe impact assessment strictly requires a human in the loop to verify and judge.

CATEGORIES

Health Courts and Law