Vice President Kamala Harris addresses the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago on Aug. 19, 2024.
Tom Williams | CQ-Roll Call, Inc. | Getty Images
Vice President Kamala Harris wants to forgive medical debt for millions of Americans.
The economic plan Harris rolled out last week notes that the Democratic presidential nominee and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, would work with states to relieve people of their medical debt and “to help them avoid accumulating such debt in the future, because no one should go bankrupt just because they had the misfortune of becoming sick or hurt.”
Some 15 million Americans have medical bills on their credit reports, according to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau research published in April. People in the U.S. owe at least $220 billion in medical debt, a February KFF analysis found.
“Medical debt affects an enormous number of people, so it’s an issue that resonates with voters,” said Larry Levitt, executive vice president for health …