Medical Debt Project

Through our Medical Debt Project, Tzedek DC provides direct legal services to clients with medical debt, including medical debt tradelines and credit card tradelines where the underlying bills stem from medical debt.

We help clients:

• Review medical bills for accuracy

• Provide advice on hospital financial assistance programs

• Review clients’ credit reports and dispute inaccurate information

• Represent clients in negotiations over medical debt in or out of court with hospitals and debt collectors

Our Medical Debt Project in the News!

• WTOP News - “DC nonprofit seeks to fill void of shuttered federal agency protecting consumers from medical debt” - February 15, 2025

• TANTV - “Thousands of Low-income DC Residents to Become Medical-Debt-Free” - September 2, 2024

• The Washington Post - “D.C. cancels $42 million in residents’ medical debt” - August 30, 2024

• ABC 7 News - “'This is a big win': DC residents see $42 million in medical debt canceled” - August 30, 2024

• WUSA9 News - “DC to cancel nearly $42 million in medical debt for low-income residents” - August 30, 2024

• WTOP News - “How DC used less than a quarter-million dollars to clear $42M of debt for residents” - August 30, 2024

• Fox 5 DC - “$42 million in medical debt erased for more than 62,000 DC residents” - August 30, 2024

• The Washington Times - “Medical debt canceled for 62,000 D.C. residents” - August 30, 2024

• American Military News - “City erases $42 million in medical debt for over 62,000 residents” - August 30, 2024

• Hoodline - “Over $42 Million in Medical Debt Cleared for 62,000 Washington, D.C. Residents in Groundbreaking Relief Effort” - August 30, 2024

• BitterSweet Monthly - “It's very, very expensive to be poor” - June 2024

• The Washington Lawyer - “The Crushing Weight of Medical Debt” - November-December 2023

• The New York Times - “Consumer Agency Moves to Ban Medical Debt From Credit Reports” - September 29, 2023

• NPR/WAMU - “D.C. wants to cancel $90 million in medical debt. Here’s how it would work.” - May 30, 2023

• Common Dreams - “Freedom From Medical Debt' Campaign to Launch With Virtual Town Hall” - May 8, 2023

• The Washington Post - “Joining national trend, D.C. to cancel $90M in residents’ medical debt” - March 23, 2023

• The Washington Post - “Health equity grants awarded to groups helping low-income D.C. residents” - October 20, 2022

Also check out:

• We defended the CFPB’s rule removing medical debt from credit reports on February 13, 2025

• We testified in support of canceling medical debt on February 22, 2023, the advocacy for which was successful as of March 22, 2023, and subsequently erased on August 30, 2024, (as reported above)

• Our Medical Debt Attorney Jennifer Holloway participated in a webinar at the American Bar Association on July 24, 2024

• We co-convened a Medical Debt Panel on October 19, 2023, with Temple Sinai

• Our Medical Debt Attorney Jennifer Holloway participated in a panel with then-CFPB Director Rohit Chopra on July 11, 2023

• Our Medical Debt Project work has been funded by the Health Equity Fund (twice!), as well as through an Equal Justice Works fellowship!