Discharge Medical Debts Through Bankruptcy

It only takes one accident or one illness to create medical debts that are overwhelming and impossible to pay. Even individuals with the best health insurance could find themselves with thousands of dollars in unpaid medical bills following a severe injury or complex surgery. They go from managing their money and living by a budget to trying to find enough money to cover their basic living expenses because a smart medical provider sued for a judgment so that it could garnish wages. Do not let this happen to you! You have already suffered through a traumatic accident or a devastating illness and you should not be subjected to the stress and pressure of trying to pay medical bills that you cannot afford. You need to take care of yourself and your family. The Law Office of Gene F. Turnwald can help you find an affordable solution to medical debts.

Filing bankruptcy to solve medical debts

Filing a bankruptcy case will immediately stop medical providers and debt collectors from pursuing you to collect medical debts. The bankruptcy automatic stay prevents all creditors, including creditors pursuing medical debts, from initiating or continuing any actions to collect a debt after the bankruptcy case is filed. This includes filing a lawsuit, continuing a lawsuit, garnishing wages, garnishment bank accounts or contacting you by telephone or mail in an attempt to collect the debt. Therefore, filing a bankruptcy will have an immediate effect of stopping collection actions so that you can continue to recover without the stress and anxiety of unpaid medical bills.

Jane fell at a friend’s home and broke her ankle. The injury required surgery to place pins and plates in her ankle as well as months of physical therapy. She lost several weeks of wages because she was unable to work while recovering from her surgery. Unfortunately, her friend did not have adequate homeowner’s insurance to cover her medical bills and lost wages and Jane only had catastrophic health insurance, which did not cover this injury. For Jane, she went from paying her bills, saving for retirement and strengthening her financial-wellbeing to being plagued by creditors and bill collectors demanding payment for unpaid medical bills. She received threats of lawsuits and wage garnishments that caused her an enormous amount of stress and anxiety. This is when she contacted Attorney Gene F. Turnwald.

Filing bankruptcy discharges medical bills

Jane qualified for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy case, which meant that she could discharge all of her medical bills. Once she completed her bankruptcy case, the medical bills were discharged and the creditors were barred from attempting to collect the debts in the future. The Chapter 7 case also discharged Jane’s other unsecured debts that she had accumulated while she was out of work without pay. She had to charge her living expenses and borrow personal loans just to make ends meet until she could return to work. She had tried in good faith to repay all of her debts; however, the creditors would not work with her on an affordable payment arrangement that would have allowed her to repay those debts. Therefore, Jane filed a Chapter 7 bankruptcy so that she could have a fresh start to begin to recover and rebuild after her accident and financial crisis.

For individuals who are ineligible to file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, they may be eligible for a Chapter 13 bankruptcy case. Your medical bills will be included in your Chapter 13 bankruptcy case and will be repaid the same percentage as your other general unsecured creditors. At the end of the bankruptcy case, any remaining balances owed to the medical providers will be discharged. As in a Chapter 7, those creditors will be barred from ever collecting those debts from the debtor. In addition, the Chapter 13 case will have given the debtor a way to take care of any other debt problems that may have been a problem but not an immediate issue. At the end of the case, the debtor has a clean slate as to unsecured debts (with a few exceptions such as taxes, alimony, child support and student loans) to begin to rebuild his financial future.

What advice is there for people who are drowning in medical bills?

The best advice is to contact The Law Office of Gene F. Turnwald. Attorney Gene F. Turnwald has been in practice for over two decades and has the experience and knowledge to help you find a way to solve your medical debt problem. Attorney Turnwald understands how a medical emergency or a prolonged illness can disrupt your life and turn your finances upside down. What he wants his clients to understand is that they are not alone through this struggle and that there is help for those dealing with medical debt. You do not need to continue trying to make ends meet and avoiding the mailbox and the telephone for fear you may receive another threatening letter or a lawsuit.

If you are being plagued with medical bills that you cannot pay, call our office for a free bankruptcy consultation. We can show you how filing a bankruptcy case can resolve your medical bills as well as give you a fresh start. Filing a bankruptcy case is not something that many individuals do on a whim. There is much thought and consideration given to whether or not to file a bankruptcy case. We take the time to answer all of your questions to make sure that you understand bankruptcy and the bankruptcy process. By doing so, we can help you feel more at ease with your decision as well as understand the process and the steps involved in filing bankruptcy. It is our sincere desire to make filing a bankruptcy case as stress-free as possible for our clients. Call us today to schedule your free consultation and put an end to medical debt.