A recent New York Times article — Medical Debt Is Being Erased in Ohio and Illinois. Is Your Town Next? — noted that Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle will spend $12 million in January on medical debt relief for tens of thousands Cook County residents.
The real story is that her health system, Cook County Health, turns people over to collection agencies. In March, Israel Rocha, chief executive officer for Cook County Health, confirmed the current policy is to refer patients to collection agencies. As Preckwinkle publicly talks of abolishing medical debt and universal access, the public health system she controls continues to create barriers and force people to choose between health care and paying bills.
