Fair Medical Debt Reporting Act

Bill: 116-hr-8536
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Gallagher, Mike [R-WI-8]
Introduced: 2020-10-06
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Consumer credit

Debt collection

Health care costs and insurance
Latest action: action_date: 2020-10-06
text: Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.

Summaries:
action_date: 2020-10-06
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><b>Fair Medical Debt Reporting Act </b></p> <p>This bill prohibits credit reporting agencies from including certain medical debt on a consumer report. Specifically, agencies may not include on a report medical debt that has not been placed for collection, medical debt that was placed for collection within a year prior to the report, or medical debt fully paid or settled within a certain period of time. </p> <p>Before a person provides information regarding a consumer's medical debt to a credit reporting agency, that person must notify the consumer of the restrictions regarding the reporting of medical debt and provide the consumer with details regarding the medical debt. </p>

tv_txt: I 116th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 8536 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES October 6, 2020 Mr. Gallagher introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services A BILL To amend the Fair Credit Reporting Act to delay the reporting of medical debt by consumer reporting agencies, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Fair Medical Debt Reporting Act . 2. Reporting of medical debt to consumer reporting agencies The Fair Credit Reporting Act ( 15 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.) is amended— (1) in section 603, by adding at the end the following: (bb) Medical debt The term medical debt means a debt arising from the receipt of medical services, products, or devices. ; (2) in section 605(a), by adding at the end the following: (9) Any information relating to a medical debt if— (A) the debt has not been placed for collection, charged to profit or loss, or subjected to any similar action; (B) the date on which the debt was placed for collection, charged to profit or loss, or subjected to any similar action antedates the report by less than one year; or (C) the debt was fully paid or settled before the end of the one-year period beginning on the date described in subparagraph (A). ; and (3) in section 623, by adding at the end the following: (f) Additional notice requirements for medical debt Before a person furnishes information relating to a medical debt of a consumer to a consumer reporting agency, such person shall— (1) notify the consumer that no consumer reporting agency may make a consumer report containing any information relating to a medical debt if— (A) the debt has not been placed for collection, charged to profit or loss, or subjected to any similar action; or (B) the date on which the debt was placed for collection, charged to profit or loss, or subjected to any similar action antedates the report by less than one year; and (2) ensure that the consumer has been provided with a detailed accounting of such medical debt. .