Ending Medical Debt

In a rich country, the phrase "medical bankruptcy" should sound like a bad joke from a distant past. In the United States it is a steady part of life. One accident, one cancer diagnosis, one complicated pregnancy and a family that did everything right can lose years of savings. They sell cars, drain retirement funds and start over at zero. Some never recover.

The SAFECARE Plan breaks that pattern in two ways.

Start with stopping the bleeding. The plan stops new medical debt from piling up for essential care. With a universal floor, payroll contributions, no deductibles, and a hard annual copay cap, a person with bad luck gets treated and moves on instead of falling into a hole that lasts a decade.

We deal with old damage directly. Medical debt is often bought and sold for pennies on the dollar. A National Medical Debt Relief Fund can purchase and retire large portfolios of old medical bills at low cost. To the families involved, that means an end to collection calls and a cleaner slate. To the country, it means removing a drag on small business formation, education and mobility.

Critics will say this rewards irresponsibility. Reality is messier. Many debts started with insured patients who hit complex rules and technicalities. Others began with claims denied or delayed by insurers playing defense. Punishing people for being sick is not a moral stance. It is a choice to waste human potential for the satisfaction of a spreadsheet.

Under the National Health Plan, nobody gets a free luxury ride. People still work, pay contributions and face normal financial risks. They just do not lose everything because they needed an operation at the wrong moment in life.