Harsh collection practices over medical debt garners criticism

Medical care is expensive, even for those who have insurance and decent salaries. People of all income levels are susceptible to the extensive impact that unexpected medical debt can have, a type of burden that can quickly wipe out a person’s savings and leave him or her with an unmanageable financial burden. In order to collect on these past-due balances, some hospitals have taken to implementing aggressive collection tactics.

Aggressive billing practices have caught the attention of the media and others, leading to a significant amount of criticism. Patients in Tennessee are like the many others across the nation who have to accumulate debt to get medical care that they or their families need. Despite their patients’ predicaments, some hospitals have taken to suing people who are past-due on their payments.

In serious cases, the tactics employed by some care providers have led to some patients losing their homes or enduring wage garnishment. A specific example of how harmful these practices can be is one family who has three children with cystic fibrosis. The mother works two jobs, yet she can barely keep up with payments and has to deal with debt collectors calling all the time.

Medical debt can be a terrible burden for many Tennessee consumers. If a person has a balance that he or she cannot manage alone and is dealing with debt collectors calling day and night, a beneficial option may be to file for bankruptcy. While this is rarely a person’s first choice, it does offer a way to deal with certain types of unsecured balances in an organized and effective manner.