Sen. Kennedy Introduces PATCH Act to Ban Medical Debt from Credit Reports
The PATCH Act is currently in the early stages of the legislative process. It was recently introduced in the Senate and sent to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs for review. No further actions are scheduled at this time, but the bill remains active.
While medical debt relief is popular with the public, bills introduced by a single senator often struggle to pass without a large group of supporters from both parties.
Scores run from -100 (strongly harmful) to +100 (strongly beneficial) for each group, combining impact, certainty, scope, and duration ratings of 1-5. How impact scoring works
Small business owners often use personal credit to secure business loans and lines of credit. Medical debt on their personal credit reports can block access to the capital they need to start or grow a business. This bill would remove that barrier for entrepreneurs carrying medical debt.
“creditors are prohibited from obtaining or using information relating to the medical debt of a consumer in determining whether or not to extend credit to that consumer.”
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.
Introduced in Senate
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
No votes recorded for this bill yet.
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
PATCH Act
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