LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced this week that more than $21 million in medical debt is being canceled for nearly 10,000 Michiganders. While recipients won’t have to repay those debts, taxpayers are helping fund the relief.
The state partnered with Undue Medical Debt, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, to cancel the debts. This week’s announcement marks the third round of cancellation supported by a $4.5 million appropriation in the fiscal year 2024 budget, enacted in 2023 when Democrats controlled both the Michigan House and Senate. Whitmer signed the budget into law.
How does it work?
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Undue Medical Debt purchases qualifying medical debt in bulk at steep discounts, then cancels it. Taxpayers fund the discounted purchase without assuming responsibility for the remaining balance.
The $21 million represents the face value of the debt canceled, rather than the amount spent purchasing it. Whitmer’s announcement does not disclose the exact public cost of this particular round.
According to the state, eligible recipients must have household incomes at or below 400% of the federal poverty level or medical debt totaling at least 5% of their annual income.
There is no application process. Relief depends on participating providers making qualifying debt available. Recipients are notified by mail.
The state says additional rounds of debt cancellation are planned.
Separate medical debt protections draw bipartisan support
Although the appropriation was approved under Democratic control, separate efforts to strengthen medical debt protections have drawn Republican support.
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On June 26, 2025, Sens. Sarah Anthony, D-Lansing, and Jonathan Lindsey, R-Coldwater, announced bipartisan legislation to establish hospital financial assistance requirements and strengthen protections for patients struggling with medical expenses.
The Senate passed an expanded five-bill package on March 11, 2026. Lindsey also credited Rep. Angela Rigas, R-Alto, for sponsoring additional medical debt consumer protections in the House.
Those legislative efforts address hospital financial assistance, interest charges and collection practices. Support for those protections does not establish support for the taxpayer-funded debt cancellation program.
