LEXINGTON, Ky. — A nonprofit in the commonwealth is collecting donations to help erase medical debt for vulnerable Kentuckians. Half of donations that Kentucky Voices for Health receives this holiday season will forgive delinquent debt.

What You Need To Know

  • Half of donations Kentucky Voices for Health (KVH) receives this holiday season will forgive delinquent debt.

  • KVH is partnering with RIP Medical Debt. They can buy medical debt at a steep discount and forgive medical debt

  • According to HelpAdvisor's medical debt study, Kentucky has the 10th highest percent of residents who have a credit report and have medical debt in collections 
  • KVH said they are hoping to raise $11,000, which can erase all the medical debt in Kentucky

At the Kentucky Voices for Health (KVH) annual meeting, John Bowman spoke about medical debt, an issue he understands well because of his medical emergency in 2006.

"My throat swelled shut, and I went to the hospital," Bowman said. "I went to Georgetown Community Hospital, and they couldn't do anything for me, so they called in a lifeflight to lifeflight me from Georgetown to Lexington." 

At the University of Kentucky (UK) Hospital, Bowman said he had emergency surgery and was intubated with a ventilator. He then spent a week in the ICU.

"When I got out of the hospital, I had a $160,000 hospital bill with the helicopter flight, too," Bowman said. "Luckily, UK felt sorry for me and wrote off my hospital stay, but the lifeflight I had to pay off." 

His 18-mile flight cost him around $60,000. 

"When you open it up to see it, you almost go into shock, and I almost had to get lifeflighted again because you got a heart attack," he said. 

Bowman is not alone. According to HelpAdvisor's medical debt study, Kentucky has the 10th highest percent of residents who have a credit report and have medical debt in collections. KVH, the nonprofit organization, is collecting donations this season and half will go to forgiving medical debt. They are hoping to raise $11,000.

“$11,000 equals $1.8 million in the world of medical debt," said Cody Kramer, KVH communications associate. "When we found that out, we knew that was a pretty attainable goal. $11,000, that does massive good for a lot of people."

It took Bowman about 10 years to pay off his medical debt.

"Medical debt is a big debt for a lot of people," Bowman said. "Anything we can do to help Kentuckians get rid of that debt and be free of medical debt, I'm all for it."

If KVH reaches its goal, Kramer said, it will be enough to erase all the available medical debt in Kentucky. 

KVH is partnering with RIP Medical Debt. They can buy medical debt at a steep discount and forgive medical debt.

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