CFPB Finalizes Rule Removing Medical Bills from Credit Reports

We first posted about this back in June;  The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) recently finalized a rule they say will remove around $49 billion in medical bills from the credit reports of nearly 15 million people.  The CFPB says medical debts provide little predictive value to lenders about borrowers’ ability to repay other debts.  The new rule amends Regulation V, which implements the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)

The CFPB’s action will ban the inclusion of medical bills on credit reports used by lenders and prohibit lenders from using medical information in their lending decisions. The rule will increase privacy protections and prevent debt collectors from using the credit reporting system to coerce people to pay bills they don’t owe. The CFPB has found that medical debts provide little predictive value to lenders about borrowers’ ability to repay other debts, and consumers frequently report receiving inaccurate bills or being asked to pay bills that should have been covered by insurance or financial assistance programs.

Click here to read the full release at the CFPB.

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