The Biden administration on Tuesday proposed a rule that would bar credit reporting agencies from including medical debt on credit reports sent to lenders, a decision aimed at keeping creditors from obtaining and using information about medical and dental debt to make credit eligibility determinations.
“We are making it so that medical debt cannot be used against you when you apply for a car loan, a home loan or a small-business loan or something of that nature,” Vice President Kamala Harris said in a call with reporters announcing the rule.
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra said the rule would also mean aggressive debt collectors that buy medical debt from health care providers would have less leverage to force consumers to pay for collections that might not even be accurate. “Some have seized on medical debt as a major money-making enterprise,” he said.
