Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, released this statement following the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) rule that will prohibit medical debt from being included in a consumer’s credit report used by a lender and prohibit lenders from using medical information in their lending decisions.

“I applaud the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, under the leadership of Director Rohit Chopra, for banning the inclusion of medical debt in credit reports used by lenders, which will give American families much needed relief they deserve. This step will remove nearly $50 billion in medical debt from credit reports that have unfairly lowered the credit scores of about 15 million Americans, including servicemembers, veterans, seniors, and students across the country. As we all know, illness or injury is often random and unavoidable. Unfortunately, when medical bills are invalid, unsubstantiated, or inaccurate, having them on your credit report adds insult to injury. Removing unpaid medical debt from credit reports is necessary because medical debt has little predictive value in assessing a borrower’s creditworthiness when it comes to repaying other loans. There is simply no reason families should be further penalized by medical debt in this way any longer.

“This final rule is a culmination of policy work that I have done for more than a decade in Congress to bring attention to this issue and advance legislation to stop medical debt from ruining the futures of hardworking American families. I am glad that the CFPB is once again taking action to protect working-class families and minimize the impact of these costly medical bills. I look forward to seeing this rule come into effect.”

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Background:

In May 2013, Ranking Member Waters introduced the Medical Debt Responsibility Act, which included reforms to prevent medical debt from subsequently harming a consumer’s credit and their ability to obtain a car loan, mortgage, or other forms of credit.

In September 2014, Ranking Member Waters released a comprehensive bill entitled the Fair Credit Reporting Improvement Act that would make sweeping reforms to the consumer reporting system, including provisions to limit the impact of medical debt on an affected consumer’s credit.

In May 2016, Raking Member Waters introduced the Comprehensive Consumer Credit Reporting Reform Act, which built on the 2014 discussion draft to improve the consumer reporting system, including with respect to the adverse impact medical debt has played.

In September 2017, Ranking Member Waters reintroduced the Comprehensive Consumer Credit Reporting Reform Act, which included provisions to help consumers adversely impacted by medical debt.

In February 2019, then Chairwoman Waters convened a hearing with the CEOs of the nationwide consumer reporting companies to explore the extensive shortcomings of the consumer reporting system, including with respect to the impact medical debt has on consumers’ ability to access credit.

In July 2019, the House Financial Services Committee, under the leadership of then Chairwoman Waters, marked up a series of bills to address a variety of problems with the credit reporting system, including legislation to strengthen consumer protections relating to medical debt.

In January 2020, the U.S. House of Representatives passed comprehensive legislation under the stewardship of then Chairwoman Waters to repair the broken consumer reporting system, including provisions to curb the negative impact medical debt plays on consumer credit reports.

In April 2021, then Chairwoman Waters introduced and advanced through the House Financial Services Committee her bill, the Comprehensive Debt Collection Improvement Act, to strengthen consumer protections, including with respect to medical debt protection and reporting to credit bureaus. In May 2021, the House passed the bill.

In May 2021, the House Financial Services Committee, under the leadership of then Chairwoman Waters, convened a hearing on consumer credit reporting issues, including examining the adverse impact medical debt plays with consumers’ ability to access credit.

In December 2024, Ranking Member Waters reintroduced the Comprehensive Debt Collection Improvement Act.