North Carolina hospitals—led by the state's largest public medical system—have sued thousands of their patients since 2017, according to a new analysis that sheds additional light on the aggressive tactics U.S. hospitals routinely use to collect from people who fall behind on their bills.
The report, produced by the state treasurer and Duke University School of Law researchers, and related patient interviews offer harrowing accounts of people pursued for tens of thousands of dollars and often surprised by liens that hospitals placed on family homes.interviewed by researchers said they'd been surprised to learn about property liens only after they tried to sell their homes or after a parent who owned the home died.
The North Carolina state treasurer released the new report as a growing number of states, including North Carolina, are working to expand protections for patients, often in the face of hospital industry lobbying. The suits generated more than $57 million in judgments for the hospitals, researchers found, including millions of dollars in interest charges and other fees assessed against patients and their families.
Atrium also pushes patients who can't afford medical bills into loans from private equity-backed lender AccessOne that can come with interest rates as high as 13%, a KFF Health News investigation found last year.
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