Bernie Sanders and Ro Khanna reveal bill aimed at eliminating medical debt

Exclusive: legislation would create a program to cancel all existing patient debt and block creditors from collecting past medical bills

Two prominent progressive lawmakers, Vermont senator Bernie Sanders and California congressman Ro Khanna, will reveal on Wednesday a new bill aimed at eliminating medical debt, the Guardian has exclusively learned.

The bill would create a federal grant program to cancel all existing patient debt and amend the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to block creditors from collecting past medical bills. The legislation would also update billing requirements for medical providers and alter the Consumer Credit Reporting Act to prevent credit agencies from reporting information related to unpaid medical bills, alleviating the risk of such debt damaging patients’ credit histories.