April 12, 2021
One Good Thing: Flight paramedic treats patient medical debt
When flight paramedic Rita Krenz boards a helicopter, she knows her patients are about to face problems she can’t fix — a health care system that buries people in debt after a car accident or stroke.
So she decided to do something about it. She turned for help to RIP Medical Debt, a nonprofit that buys and forgives medical debt.
Krenz started a fundraising campaign that brought in more than $18,000 for the charity. That money has helped RIP Medical Debt forgive the debt of more than 900 people so far, with the average bill abolished totaling around $1,340.
Krenz has no way of knowing if she will help anyone she’s treated. But it’s enough to know that her campaign will help somebody.