Trinity Health of New England has partnered with the nonprofit, RIP Medical Debt, to wipe out millions of dollars in medical bills for thousands of patients in Connecticut and other parts of New England.
Under the agreement, RIP purchased past due accounts from Trinity Health of New England for more than 22,000 people who owed the health care provider money.
In all, the deal will erase $32.76 million in medical debt, according to a news release from Trinity Health and RIP.
"Working directly with providers like Trinity Health Of New England is an amazing win-win-win scenario," said RIP Medical Debt President and CEO Allison Sesso. "Our valued hospital partner is compensated for some of the care it provided (without having to sell accounts to a debt collector), patients are relieved of the financial and emotional burden of debt they can’t pay, and communities are uplifted as a result."
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RIP's criteria for relieving the debt have two factors: individual or family income cannot be more than four times the federal poverty level, and/or the individual's medical debt must be five-percent or more of that person's gross annual income, according to the release.
RIP says the top five counties where they are erasing medical debt for patients are Hartford County, New Haven County, Tolland County, Hampden County, Massachusetts, and Litchfield County.
The nonprofit says there are no strings attatched to the agreement. RIP is not a collection agency and will not turn to the patients to recoup any of the money, the nonprofit said.
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Medical debt patients may owe to providers other than Trinity Health of New England is not covered under the agreement.
Those who are having their medical debt relieved will be notified by letter in an envelope from RIP Medical Debt, according to the release.
The letters will begin to go out this week, but may take a few months to fully roll out due to the number of accounts being erased.
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