Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan have said they will support a bill, to be introduced by a Rochester state senator, that would remove interest on medical debt and ban hospitals from withholding care to patients due to outstanding debt.

“Credit card debt to buy a television is one thing. Debt because you had a heart attack, or were hit by a car, or have an illness is an entirely different thing,” Walz said during a press conference in St. Paul on Friday. “And the idea that we’re charging massive interest on that, that we’re reporting it to the credit bureau and we’re destroying lives over it makes absolutely no sense.”

Sen. Liz Boldon, DFL-Rochester, is set to introduce the Minnesota Debt Fairness Act during the Minnesota Legislature’s upcoming session, which begins next week. Rep. Liz Reyer, DFL-Eagan, is the House sponsor.

“As a registered nurse, I interact with patients and their loved ones on nearly a daily basis,” Boldon said. “Medical bills and debt should be the last thing on their minds as they try to heal. But too often, for too many people, the thought of having their savings drained weighs heavily.”

Changes to fees, reporting

In addition to zeroing out interest on medical debt and preventing medical providers from withholding services due to one’s debt status, the bill would also prohibit medical debt from being reported to credit bureaus and would stop medical debt creditors from intercepting a patient’s tax refunds through revenue recapture. It also bans providers from charging consumer fees for coding errors.

“The act repeals the law that automatically transfers medical debt to a patient’s spouse,” added Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison. “No other kind of debt can automatically be transferred between married couples without their consent, but Minnesota law currently allows that to happen. It’s unfair, and I believe it’s immoral.”

Language for the bill is not yet available, Boldon confirmed, but Ellison said the legislation also addresses wage garnishments and collections. Ellison said his office has been working on this legislation for months.

“This bill aims to correct the flaws in our debt collection system, making it fairer and easier for Minnesotans to work their way out of debt,” Ellison said. “Medical debt is unique, so it should have a unique response and unique provisions in the law.”

Attorney General’s investigations

The Minnesota Attorney General’s Office began investigating Mayo Clinic’s medical billing practices in late 2022 following a Post Bulletin investigation that found that patients were sued for their medical debt when their bills could have been partially or wholly covered by Mayo Clinic’s charity care policy. The office also launched an investigation into Allina Health in 2023 after the New York Times reported that Allina denied non-emergency medical services to some patients with outstanding bills.

In September 2023, Ellison held a medical billing listening session in Rochester, where several health care workers and area residents spoke about the impact of medical debt on their patients’ lives or their own.

During the press conference, Walz and Flanagan shared their own families’ struggles with medical debt.

“When I was a teenager and my little brother was 8, my father was dying and in the hospital on life support,” Walz said. “Those last 10 days ended up putting my mom back to work for 20 years to try and pay off medical debt.”

When Flanagan was a child, she said, her mother at one point filed for bankruptcy due to medical debt accrued through Flanagan’s multiple hospital stays for asthma.

“That really took us a long time to recover,” Flanagan said. “When we talk about this, when we have the power to do something about it for Minnesotans across the state, we absolutely have to act.”

The Minnesota Legislature’s 2024 regular session begins Monday, Feb. 12.

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