Pritzker announces round 3 of medical debt relief program at University of Chicago

CHICAGO (WGN) — Governor JB Pritzker, along with other healthcare professionals and advocates, gathered at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine to reveal a new round of medical debt relief for families across Illinois Wednesday.

“Medical expenses can create financial hardships for so many individuals,” said Barry Fields, chairman of the University of Chicago Medical Center Board of Trustees.

“Too many have had their credit ruined due to an unpaid medical bill,” Pritzker said. “Too many have been pushed into bankruptcy due to a prolonged or unexpected illness.”

Last year, Pritzker partnered with the non-profit organization Undue Medical Debt (UMD) to reduce medical debt in the State of Illinois by $1 billion.

With that goal in mind, UMD works to purchase debt from collection agencies, hospitals and other similar organizations. According to a spokesperson with the program, for every dollar spent under UMD, approximately $170 of debt is eliminated for Illinois patients.

“We focus on individuals earning below four times the federal poverty level, or who’s medical debt exceeds 5% of their annual income,” said Courtney Werpy Story, Vice President of Government Initiatives for UMD. “Once acquired, debt is erased. No application. No strings attached.”

Hospitals that have agreed to participate in the program and provide debt relief for their patients in future rounds include the University of Chicago Medical Center, Mount Sinai Hospital, Advent Health hospitals in Bolingbrook, Glen Oaks, Hinsdale and La Grange, and Loyola Medicine hospitals in Berwyn, North Riverside and Oakbrook Terrace.

Patients eligible for the latest round of relief will receive a letter in the mail in the next week, according to a spokesperson with the program.

Those behind the state initiative said the effort is intended to lighten the financial strain on families and promote health equity.

“Debt forgiveness goes beyond medical relief,” Fields said. “It gives patients peace of mind ensuring they don’t delay or avoid getting medical treatment.”

According to Elizabeth Whitehorn, Director of the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services, this is the third round of medical debt forgiveness under Pritzker and UMD’s partnership.

“This builds on two previous rounds where $345 million of debt was relieved for 270,000 Illinoisans,” Whitehorn said. “They shouldn’t have to choose between paying basic living expenses or paying down medical debt.”

Currently, the third round has erased more than $220 million in medical debt for about 170,000 Illinois residents.

Pritzker said that while the state is implementing programs to forgive medical debt, he remains concerned about potential cuts to vital services like Medicaid at the federal level, pointing out that cuts to programs like Medicaid threaten access to critical healthcare for Illinois families.

“If Donald Trump and the Republican congress eliminate the Medicaid expansion, we will have people who get sick and die because they don’t have coverage,” Pritzker said.