We partner with hospitals and health systems to abolish problematic medical debt.


Medical debt results from unplanned illnesses and accidents and from medical bills that many can’t afford. Hospitals strive to provide charity care, but many people burdened by financial hardship still owe problematic medical debt—in some cases years after services were provided.
RIP Medical Debt is a unique solution to these problems. We are a donor-supported, national charity that abolishes medical debt for people experiencing financial hardship.
"We’re wiping the slate clean."
Alan Levine
CEO, Ballad Health
"By removing this burden of old debt, we hope to better engage with our patients, so they access care and other services when they need them without the fear of unmanageable expenses."
Anthony Keck
Chief Population Health Officer, Ballad Health.
Working with RIP
RIP's solution benefits patients, hospitals, and communities.
RIP works directly with hospitals, including many that have been reluctant to sell patient accounts.
Healthcare organizations that donate or sell patient accounts to RIP can:
- Earn revenue from dormant bad debt accounts without subjecting patients to aggressive collections actions.
- Address a major social determinant of health and health equity issue.
- Identify opportunities to refine their charity care programs and better serve their communities.
- $6,748,483,828 in medical debt relieved to date
- 3,619,950 Families have received debt relief through RIP
- 0 collected on or sent to collections
- 33 Hospitals have had their patients' debts abolished

Hospital/Health System Benefits
- Dispose of patient debt for patients qualifying for "financial hardship"
- Receive cash for this debt via transparent pricing mirroring debt buyers
- Improve Financial Assistance Programs (FAP) as gaps in processes may be uncovered
Patient Benefits
- Abolish debt tax free
- Receive another opportunity for financial assistance (charity care)
- Relieve harassment and stress caused by Collection Agency tactics
- Improve credit score as medical debt and related information is removed from credit bureaus
- Afford more patient/family basic necessities
Community Benefits
- Address a social determinant of health
- Leverage additional resources for community housing, food, education and health improvement initiatives
- Enhance health equity as some communities are disproportionately burdened by medical debt
- Respond to financial hardships caused by pandemic
Blog Posts

Financial Assistance Policies Still Leave Patients With Medical Debt, RIP Can Help With That.
Despite the generous financial assistance programs, many patients are experiencing financial hardship. Healthcare organizations can write off patients' medical debt, however this does not always remove them from patient credit reports. Our debt abolishment model ensures medical debt is permanently relieved so patients can live with peace of mind again.
Read More
Defining Financial Hardship and Who Gets Debt Relief
RIP’s financial hardship criteria for medical debt abolishment are as follows: Low Income: The patient’s (or guarantor’s) household income is at or below 200% of the current federal poverty guidelines
Read More
Why Medical Debt Is A Problem
Millions of Americans are struggling to meet the ever-increasing medical expenses, as high deductible health insurance plans become more common. Medical debt keeps families anchored in financial hardship. With our help, medical debt can be permanently abolished, freeing millions of families from emotional and financial distress.
Read MoreRecent News

RIP Medical Debt Applauds Federal Commitment to Reducing Impact of Medical Debts & Strengthening Consumer Protections
The White House released a fact sheet outlining in broad terms how it plans to reduce the impact of burdensome medical debt and strengthen consumer protections. This afternoon Vice President Kamala Harris announced four areas of reform to protect families from destructive medical debt: stopping harmful practices from providers/debt collectors; reducing how medical debt impacts credit worthiness; forgiving the debt of low-income American veterans and increasing general knowledge of consumers’ rights.
Read More
RIP Medical Debt Supports Credit Agencies Clearing Majority of Medical Debt
RIP Medical Debt (RIP) celebrates the news this morning from TransUnion, Equifax & Experian that a majority of medical debts on credit reports will be removed come July but supports further, federal change to protect patients from harmful medical debts landing on their credit reports.
Read More
Minnesota Hospital Association Names RIP Medical Debt an Endorsed Business Partner
MHA's Endorsed Business Partner (EBP) program brings organizations to MHA's members that can contribute to advancing the health of Minnesotans. These innovative organizations provide unique value-added products and services to hospitals and health systems. Each Endorsed Business Partner is rigorously vetted so that specific member needs are addressed by partners who bring proven value.
Read MoreCheck back soon for additional news about how RIP is partnering with hospitals.
Partner with RIP
Bring new philanthropic resources into your community while integrating a state-of-the-art step into your revenue cycle process.
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Frequent Questions
Debt Relief
Working With RIP
About RIP Medical Debt
RIP Medical Debt (RIP)’s mission is to end the burden of problematic medical debt in the United States. RIP:
- Is a 501(c)(3) national charity that acquires and abolishes medical debt for people experiencing financial hardship.
- Is funded by donors, including individuals, faith-based organizations, and others.
- Received a transformative, $50 million gift from MacKenzie Scott (December 2020).
- Was founded in 2014 and in 2016 was featured on “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.”
- Has acquired and abolished $6,748,483,828 in medical debt for over 3,619,950 families.
- Never collects on accounts; instead, RIP sends letters telling patients that their debt has been cancelled and that derogatory marks on credit reports have been removed.
Medical debt:
- Results from unplanned, unexpected illnesses and accidents; many Americans have little savings to buffer the shocks of medical bills.
- Is more prevalent in communities of color.
- Is a Social Determinant of Health, because patients with burdensome medical debt often delay the care they need, experience problems obtaining employment and housing, have difficulty escaping poverty, and experience mental stress.
The coronavirus pandemic is exacerbating these problems.
Before 2020, RIP abolished medical debt it acquired from the secondary market (commercial debt buyers). Now, RIP is working directly with hospitals – including many that have been reluctant to sell patient accounts. RIP obtained Advisory Opinion #20-04 from the HHS OIG, which provides comfort that hospitals can donate or sell medical debts to RIP.
RIP’s debt abolishment process is transparent and efficient:
- The hospital transmits a patient accounts data file to RIP (after BAA is signed).
- RIP identifies patients in financial hardship (after integrating data from TransUnion and applying abolishment criteria) and estimates the Fair Market Value of their accounts.
- The hospital decides which accounts to donate or sell to RIP for abolishment.
- Agreements are signed and RIP acquires the medical debt (via donations or purchases).
- RIP sends abolishment letters to patients and adverse credit bureau information is removed by the entity that placed it there.
Hospitals that donate or sell accounts to RIP for abolishment:
- Address a Social Determinant of Health and enhance community wellbeing.
- Can receive cash from dormant patient accounts.
- May be able to report more charity care and community benefit.
- Bring new philanthropic resources into the community.
- Integrate a state-of-the-art step into the revenue cycle process.
- Identify opportunities to refine their financial assistance programs.
Our Process
To date, RIP has acquired most of the medical debt it has abolished on the secondary market from commercial debt buyers which had purchased accounts from over 500 hospitals, more than 230 physician groups, and diagnostic laboratories.
To allay potential compliance concerns about working directly with providers, RIP obtained an Advisory Opinion with the Office of Inspector General (OIG) of the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) confirming that health systems, hospitals, and physician groups are allowed to donate or sell medical debts directly to RIP for the purpose of abolishing patient liabilities.