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Less than a week after NBC News detailed how the hospital system Atrium Health of North Carolina aggressively pursued the medical debts of elderly patients, placing liens on their homes to recover the bills hospital, the non-profit company announced that it will cancel those obligations and forgive unpaid debts. associated with them. About 11,500 liens on people’s homes in North Carolina and five other states will be released, Atrium’s company, Advocate Health, said, some dating back 20 years or more.
Advocate Health said it is changing its policy now as “the next logical step” after a 2022 decision to stop filing lawsuits and property rights to collect on patients’ medical debts. The company declined NBC News’ request for an interview about the change.
For more on this story, tune in to “NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt” tonight at 6:30 pm ET / 5:30 pm CT or check your local listings.
Reporting on the national issue of medical debt last week, NBC News focused on Terry Belk, 68, a Charlotte resident whose wife died of breast cancer in 2012 and who himself was later diagnosed with prostate cancer. Both his wife’s treatment and Belk’s treatment racked up tens of thousands of dollars in bills that his insurance didn’t cover. When Belk couldn’t afford to pay, Atrium Health took it to court, the company confirmed. In 2005, Belk signed what’s called a deed of trust with Atrium, granting him the right to receive $23,000 when he sold his family home.
Belk said he was stunned to receive a phone call from an Atrium Health executive Tuesday advising him that his debts would be forgiven. “There is no way this would have happened without the national coverage from NBC News,” Belk said.
Rebecca Ceresehealth policy advocate at the North Carolina Justice Center, a non-profit fighting poverty in the state, said she was very pleasantly surprised by Atrium’s move and hopes other hospitals will follow. “I’m really thankful that people like Terry had the courage to talk about something that’s hard to talk about,” Cerese told NBC News. “Facing an illness or losing a loved one is hard enough – we shouldn’t have to put up with this additional stress of facing financial ruin.”