A hospital and clinic system based in New Orleans is collaborating with a nonprofit organization from New York to eliminate the debts of patients in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama.
A New Orleans-based system of hospitals and clinics, which serves Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama, has partnered with a New York nonprofit organization to eliminate $366 million in medical debt for approximately 193,000 patients who are in need.
The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate revealed on Wednesday that Ochsner Health has entered into a partnership facilitated by Undue Medical Debt. This donor-funded organization specializes in negotiating with healthcare providers to acquire and eliminate the medical debt of individuals who are least equipped to handle the financial burden.
Ochsner, the largest health system in Louisiana, boasts an impressive network of 46 hospitals and 370 clinics and urgent cares across the three states it serves.
In a statement, the company expressed its pride in collaborating with Undue Medical Debt to facilitate the acquisition and cancellation of previous one-time debts for eligible residents.
Ochsner, Undue Medical Debt, and New Orleans recently announced a groundbreaking agreement that will eliminate over $59 million in medical debt for approximately 66,000 patients in the city. This significant deal promises to provide much-needed relief to individuals burdened by their healthcare expenses.
Last year, the city made a commitment to allocate $1.3 million in federal funds from the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act to Undue Medical Debt. This program was established during the pandemic to acquire eligible debt and eliminate it.
According to Daniel Lempert, the vice president for communications and marketing at the nonprofit, the city government deserves recognition for initiating the process. He stated, “Once we presented our model to the hospital and gained their support, we discovered that there were additional debts that met the program’s criteria.”
Lempert mentioned that, apart from the funds allocated due to the pandemic, his organization utilized donations and grassroots fundraising, both at a local and national level, to acquire the debt from Ochsner.
The organization did not disclose the exact amount it paid, but if we consider their usual payment rate of around 1 cent for every dollar of debt, the approximate amount would be $3.6 million.