{"id":250876,"date":"2026-04-04T01:18:17","date_gmt":"2026-04-04T01:18:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/250876\/"},"modified":"2026-04-04T01:18:17","modified_gmt":"2026-04-04T01:18:17","slug":"oakland-county-helps-over-20000-residents-with-medical-debt-with-arpa-funded-program","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/250876\/","title":{"rendered":"Oakland County Helps Over 20,000 Residents with Medical Debt with ARPA Funded-Program"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Oakland County Helps Over 20,000 Residents with Medical Debt with ARPA Funded-Program<\/p>\n

(Oakland County, April 3, 2026)<\/p>\n

Oakland County, MI \u2013 Oakland County\u2019s medical debt relief initiative continues. In the latest round of relief, the county\u2019s partnership with the national nonprofit Undue Medical Debt has abolished more than $6 million in medical debt, benefiting approximately 6,300 Oakland County residents.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis initiative is about giving people a second chance,\u201d said Oakland County Executive Dave Coulter. \u201cBy eliminating this burden for thousands more residents, we\u2019re helping people regain their financial footing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Notification letters from Undue Medical Debt were scheduled to arrive in residents\u2019 mailboxes beginning March 9, 2026, informing them that their qualifying medical debt has been permanently eliminated. With this latest round, Oakland County has now abolished more than $15 million in medical debt for over 20,000 residents since launching the program.<\/p>\n

The program is funded through $2 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding, which Oakland County is using to abolish tens of millions of dollars in medical debt for tens of thousands of residents across the county.<\/p>\n

Medical debt is a leading cause of bankruptcy in the United States and affects an estimated 114,000 Oakland County residents.<\/p>\n

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Undue Medical Debt works with hospitals, health systems and debt holders to identify qualifying medical debt. Debts are then purchased for pennies on the dollar and permanently abolished. Eligible residents must either earn at or below four times the federal poverty level or have medical debt that exceeds 5 percent of their annual income.<\/p>\n

The program operates on a source-based model, meaning qualifying debts can only be abolished if the provider or debt holder agrees to participate. Residents cannot apply for the program; instead, eligible debts are identified through partnerships with providers and debt holders.<\/p>\n

Oakland County will continue working with Undue Medical Debt and participating providers to identify additional eligible debt for future rounds of relief.<\/p>\n

For more information about the medical debt abolition program or to learn more about Undue Medical Debt, visit www.UndueMedicalDebt.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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