administration

Medical Debt

医療費負債 (iryōhi fusai)

Medical debt is unpaid healthcare bills that a patient owes to a hospital, clinic, or provider. It is the leading cause of personal bankruptcy in the US. Key patient rights regarding medical debt include: the right to an itemized bill, the right to apply for financial assistance before any debt goes to collections, and federal protections limiting how medical debt affects credit scores (credit bureaus began removing medical debt under $500 from reports in 2023). Negotiating with billing departments directly often results in reduced balances.

Patients should request an itemized bill and apply for financial assistance before paying any large medical bill or allowing it to go to a collection agency.

In 9 languages

Language	Term
English	Medical Debt
Japanese (日本語)	医療費負債
Chinese (中文)	医疗债务
Korean (한국어)	의료 부채
Portuguese	Dívida Médica
Spanish	Deuda Médica
Filipino	Medical Debt
Thai	หนี้ค่ารักษาพยาบาล
Vietnamese	Nợ y tế
Romanization	iryōhi fusai

Related terms

• Itemized Medical Bill 診療明細書
• Charity Care 無償医療（チャリティケア）
• HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) HIPAA（医療保険の携行性と説明責任に関する法律）
• Itemized Medical Bill 明細書（医療費）
• Hospital Financial Assistance 病院財政支援

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