These Local Governments Are Using Federal Aid to Cancel Medical Debt

From Oscar Perry Abello / Next City: With funding from city governments, the nonprofit RIP Medical Debt acquires and cancels medical debt by negotiating directly with hospitals. The only requirement is being under 400% of the federal poverty line and no application is necessary.

Click here to read the full story on Next City.

Issue Areas:

Health and Wellbeing, Medical Debt

Impact Areas:

Equity, Health and Wellness

Actors:

Government, Nonprofit / NGO

Communities Served:

—

Strategies:

Easing Economic Burdens for Individuals, Reallocating Government / Public Financing

Success Factors:

Addressing Underlying Issues, Meeting People Where They Are At, Practicing Human Centered Design, Providing Cash Instead Of Goods/Services, Resilience, Using Creative Financing

Geographic Region:

North America

Countries:

United States

Date:

November 22, 2022

More Resources:

Conversation with Alfredo Jose Brillembourg

Alfredo Jose Brillembourg is the founder of Urban–Think Tank Design Group, with offices in New York, São Paulo, Caracas, Oslo, Geneva, and Cape Town. Through his leadership at Urban–Think Tank, he has spearheaded innovative architecture and urban design projects globally,...

The Surprising Lives of Germany’s ‘Basic Income’ Raffle Winners

From Marjolein Koster, Ties Gijzel / Reasons to Be Cheerful: A randomly selected group of lucky Germans are reaping the benefits of a guaranteed monthly income. An organization raffles off a year’s worth of guaranteed monthly income, allowing recipients to...

Conversation with Huberth Méndez

Huberth Méndez is a multifaceted Costa Rican professional with a rich background in architecture, education, and research, with extensive experience spanning public institutions, private sector engagements, and non-governmental organizations. Through his work, he has pioneered initiatives aimed at challenging entrenched...

Postcards from Kamikatsu, Japan’s ‘Zero Waste Town’

From Michelle Ye Hee Lee and Julia Mio Inuma / The Washington Post: Kamikatus, Japan, a town of about 1,500 people, is working to become a zero waste community. It has transformed its waste disposal into a system of buying,...

Nehemiah: Making the American Dream possible for first-time homeowners

From CBS News: The Nehemiah project began in the 1980s building privately-owned homes on land that nobody wanted in East Brooklyn and sold the homes at prices that were affordable to working class families. Church and community organizers mobilized local...

Conversation with Chuck Spong

Chuck Spong is the Executive Director of Love Out Loud, a collaborative organization that connects leaders, volunteers, and resources to align efforts and mobilize communities in their areas of passion and giftedness. Since 2012, Chuck has focused on fostering partnerships...