California Attorney General Boosts Bill Banning Medical Debt From Credit Reports

By Molly Castle Work | Special to the OBSERVER California Attorney General Rob Bonta speaks during a news conference in July in Los Angeles. Bonta announced March 11 that he is throwing his weight behind legislation to bar medical debt from showing up on consumer credit reports. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced Monday that he is throwing his weight behind legislation to bar medical debt from showing up on consumer credit reports, a Democratic-led effort to offer protection to patients squeezed by health care bills. Bonta is a sponsor of Sen. Monique Limón’s bill, which seeks to block health care providers, as well as any contracted collection agency, from sharing a patient’s medical debt with credit reporting agencies. It would also prevent credit reporting agencies from accepting, storing, or sharing any information concerning medical debt. Medical debt isn’t necessarily an accurate reflection of credit risk, and its inclusion in credit reports can depress credit scores and make it hard for people to get a job, rent an apartment, or secure a car loan. “This is a broken part of our current system that needs to be fixed,” Bonta, a Democrat, told California...