Nonprofit Health System Pauses Policy of Cutting Off Care for Patients in Debt
The New York Times Allina Health, a large health system in the Midwest, had withheld care for patients who had $4,500 in medical bills.
Allina Health, a large nonprofit health system based in Minnesota, announced on Friday that it would stop withholding care from patients with outstanding medical debt as it re-examines its policy of cutting off services for those who have accrued at least $4,500 in outstanding bills.
The health system will now temporarily halt this practice but will not restore care for indebted patients who have already lost access.
Although Allinas hospitals treated anyone in emergency rooms, other services were cut off for indebted patients, including children and those with chronic illnesses like diabetes and depression, The New York Times reported last week. Patients werent allowed back until they had paid off their debt entirely.
