(Jan. 10, 2025) – On Tuesday this past week, the Biden administration finalized a proposed rule banning the inclusion of medical debt on credit reports.
The new regulation also prohibits lenders from using medical information in lending decisions. Additionally, the rule no longer allows debt collectors to access medical information to obtain payments from patients for "inaccurate or false medical bills."
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau estimates that $49 billion in medical bills will be removed from the credit reports of 15 million Americans. Those Americans could see their credit score increase by an average of 20 points.
The regulation takes effect in March. The incoming Trump administration has not indicated whether they support this regulation or if they will scrap the new rule upon taking office.
--Jaron Caffrey