Gov. Katie Hobbs' office says it's partnered with a nonprofit to erase $642 million in medical debt owed by almost half-a-million Arizonans.

Another more than $200 million in medical debt has been wiped out for Arizonans. And the recipients are going to know who to thank: Gov. Katie Hobbs.

The new figure was announced Monday by Allison Sasso. She’s the president and CEO of Undue Medical Debt, a company that agreed earlier this year to use some $10 million in state American Rescue Plan COVID relief dollars to buy up medical debt from hospitals and doctors for a few pennies on the dollar, eliminating a negative mark on the credit reports of those who racked up the bills.

All totaled, according to the governor’s office, the program has so far erased $642 million owed by more than 485,000 Arizonans.

  • kwomp2@sh.itjust.works
    61·
    15 hours ago

    health care in europe isn’t planned economy. as i interpret it it’s market with it’s symptoms fought on the “front-end”.

    what they did over there is a political stunt in that same direction

    • flandish@lemmy.world
      4·
      11 hours ago

      when people have healthcare they can afford, as a community even, it’s not a stunt. reminder that if it’s required for life, health, safety, education, and housing - it should NOT be allowed to profit, be owned by the workers, and until that transition happens, the current owners should be reminded they are pieces of shit. :)

      • kwomp2@sh.itjust.works
        3·
        10 hours ago

        of course they should have that. of course we need to abolish capitalism if we want a human humanity. needs of the people not profit of a few.

        to get there we do political stunts (leftover covid funds for medical debt), we take parts of the social reality away from the market or at least undo market-consequences (public health care) and we build narratives (like you just did, like I just did).

        I guess my point is on this platform too often people don’t differ between those strategies and between strategy and analysis. And if we don’t get better at that, we won’t succeed :)