Medical debt continues to burden Hoosiers. State lawmakers will study the topic today.

Hoosiers carry a significant burden: An estimated $2.2 billion of medical debt in collections. 

Medical debt keeps many from economic stability, and this burden is felt even more deeply by Hoosiers living in or near poverty.

United Way of Central Indiana is grateful that the state legislature selected medical debt as one of this summer’s study committee topics. Lawmakers will discuss medical debt today, and the study committee meeting will be livestreamed.  

Sam Snideman, United Way’s vice president of government relations, will testify at the meeting.  

The Committee on Courts and the Judiciary was assigned to study medical debt at the request of House Speaker Todd Huston and Sen. Fady Qaddoura – both legislators representing districts in United Way’s service area. 

Specifically, the committee will look at medical debt and related issues covered in Senate Bill 317, legislation that was filed in the 2025 session and supported by United Way.  

While that bill ultimately failed to pass the Senate, we are incredibly encouraged by the opportunity to continue discussing the burden of medical debt on our communities and real solutions to support Hoosiers struggling under that burden.  

The committee is charged with considering several important topics, including protection of individuals’ primary residences from liens or sale to satisfy their medical debt, caps on monthly payments for medical debt, limitations on salary garnishment, and policies around hospital payment plans and charity care. 

When the state legislature is not in session, lawmakers meet in study committees to discuss and gain a deeper understanding of policy issues facing Indiana. Study committees are a useful opportunity for legislators to hear from constituents and subject matter experts on more focused areas of policy and offer recommendations for future action.  

And they can yield results: In 2023, a summer study assignment on child care access and affordability led to increased focus on the issue of child care and the ultimate passage of Senate Enrolled Act 2 in the following session. 

Medical debt is an important topic for United Way. Last summer, we joined the United Neighborhood Centers of Indianapolis to make a join investment of over $1.7 million to relieve more than $239.6 million in medical debt.  

In doing so, we knew we needed to pair that immediate intervention with the pursuit of long-term change.  

Medical debt continues to impact families in our communities, and policy change will be essential to break the cycle of debt that keeps families in financial turmoil or forces them to choose between their health and their financial stability.  

We applaud the Legislative Council’s decision to assign medical debt as a topic for legislators to consider this summer, and we are grateful to Speaker Huston and Sen. Qaddoura for their requests elevating this issue. We look forward to today’s committee meeting, and we will continue to encourage the legislature to take up the work of addressing medical debt and health care costs in the coming session.