Most Americans Favor Forgiving Medical Debt: AP-NORC Poll

Many Americans want medical debt forgiven, a new poll from the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research showed, Cora Lewis and Linley Sanders reported for the Associated Press (AP).

About 6 in 10 people with debt from medical bills favor medical debt forgiveness if the person has large amounts of debt compared to their income, compared to about half of people without medical debt.

The survey results confirmed that about half of Americans say it’s extremely or very important for the US government to provide debt relief for those who have yet to pay off medical treatments.

Especially since the pandemic, an increasing number of cities and states — including Connecticut, New York City, New Orleans, and Chicago — are implementing their own versions of medical debt forgiveness.

The Biden administration recently announced a proposed rule that would wipe consumer medical debt off most credit reports.

The poll found that support for medical debt forgiveness is particularly high in cases where a patient experienced health care fraud. About two-thirds of US adults support medical debt forgiveness if the individual has, for example, been wrongfully billed for services.

But the majority of Americans favor relief in other situations, too, such as when the patient has made on-time payments toward an existing loan for 20 years, has large amounts of medical debt compared to their income, or is experiencing financial hardship.

About 6 in 10 people with debt from medical bills favor medical debt forgiveness if the person has large amounts of debt compared to their income, compared to about half of people without medical debt.