Seniors’ medical debt soars to $54 billion in unpaid bills

Seniors face more than $50 billion in unpaid medical bills, many of which they shouldn’t have to pay, according to a federal watchdog report.

In an all-too-common scenario, medical providers charge elderly patients the full price of an expensive medical service rather than work with the insurer that is supposed to cover it. If the patient doesn’t pay, the provider sends the bill into collections, setting off a round of frightening letters, humiliating phone calls and damaging credit reports.

That is one conclusion of a recent report titled Medical Billing and Collections Among Older Americans, from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

The report recounts a horror story from a patient in southern Pennsylvania over a hospital visit, which should have been covered by insurance.