Abolish New York Medical Debt

Every dollar you donate forgives $100 in Medical Debt

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Campaign Created ByRIP Medical Debt
The Problem

Our country is facing a public health pandemic, and it’s difficult to know what to do about it. As the largest nexus of international travel for the United States, New York has become our country’s epicenter for the COVID-19 outbreak. We have already seen the far-reaching economic consequences in our markets, but many people will be saddled with enormous new debts as they seek treatment. We know that Americans are less likely to seek medical care if they already owe previous medical debts. 

In the past forty years, medical costs have doubled, insurance copays and deductibles have spiked, and bankruptcy rates have quadrupled, creating an avalanche of destructive medical debt. 

More than 60% of bankruptcies in America have medical debt as a root cause, and the situation is especially dire in New York. We have identified over $5 million of existing medical debt we can abolish throughout the state, costing roughly $50,000.

How We Help

This campaign is an effort to clear as much existing medical debt as we can access throughout the state to provide a form of economic relief to New Yorkers and to help people feel more confident about seeking treatment should this virus infect them personally or others in their family. 

New York is like no other state in terms of its multiculturalism and overall societal contribution to the nation. That might be why New Yorkers have such a sense of community pride and neighborly love, seen everywhere from NYC to Albany.

New Yorkers often come together to care for someone who gets sick, but when one hospital trip can cost tens of thousands of dollars, the community can only do so much. The strongest communities can be devastated by the medical debt crisis. Medical debt drains money from local towns to out-of-state debt collectors, and families go bankrupt trying to pay for their loved one’s medical bills. 

When debt relief recipients open the yellow envelope from RIP, they are told that their debt has been bought by a third party and erased with no strings attached. They owe nothing on the debt and face no tax penalty. A recent beneficiary wrote to us, saying:

Every dollar you contribute is a $100 investment in New York towns and cities. Money will stay in the community instead of being taken by out-of-state debt collectors. On average, $32.87 can abolish the medical debt of an entire family, allowing them to invest in a home, schooling, or retirement.


“I read my letter over a few times to make sure it was the real thing. Receiving this debt relief renewed my faith that I can get back on track. It jump-started it – that we can do this – I can get back in the game! It’s unheard of what RIP does, and it’s a game changer in the medical world. It’s a game changer for me.” 

— Reagan, RIP Medical Debt Recipient


Campaign Support Recipients
New York
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    David L. just donated $265
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New research on the impacts of medical debt

A new survey published by PerryUndem in 2023 shows that medical debt is a shared experience for patients across the country.

Key Findings

Patients are making tradeoffs that affect their daily lives.
  1. Nearly 7 in 10 Nearly 7 in 10 U.S. adults say they receive medical bills they cannot afford. Many are forced to delay paying the bill, put it on a credit card, or challenge the bill.
  2. 6 in 10 Six in ten patients report they have self-treated, delayed, or skipped dental and medical appointments. Thirty-four percent report changing the foods they eat or eating less food to afford health care.
People and patients feel trapped in debt and see no way out. They see medical debt as different from other forms of debt - entirely the fault of institutions and systems, and not something consumers have any control over.
  1. Nearly 50% Nearly half feel trapped and believe they will never be able to pay off their debt, while a third of respondents reported feeling heightened depression and anxiety.
  2. Nearly 9 in 10 Nearly 9 in 10 blame the health care industry for fueling the medical debt crisis - not patients themselves. They say the problem stems from the system putting profit over patients.

Fundraise for This Campaign

Start a fundraiser to help those in need. Set a personal fundraising goal and track online donations easily with RIP.

How RIP Works

Over a hundred million Americans, one in three, struggles with the weight of medical debt.

  • You make a donation

    We use data analytics to pinpoint the debt of those most in need: households that earn less than 4x the federal poverty level (varies by state, family size) or whose debts are 5% or more of annual income.

  • RIP buys medical debt at a steep discount

    We buy debt in bundles, millions of dollars at a time at a fraction of the original cost. This means your donation relieves about 100x its value in medical debt.

  • Together we wipe out medical debt

    People across the country receive letters that their debt has been erased. They have no tax consequences or penalties to consider. Just like that, they’re free of medical debt.


Frequent Questions

Yes. We are a 501(c)(3) charity and your donation is 100% tax deductible.


Relevant Documents:

When we purchase a portfolio of medical debt, we abolish debt for individuals who:

  • Earn less than 4x the federal poverty level (varies by state, family size).
  • Debts are 5 percent or more of annual income.

We only buy debt that has been pre-qualified by our partners to meet at least one of these criteria. 

We never collect on debt we purchase, only relieve it.

No. With your help, we abolish medical debt permanently. Recipients have no adverse tax consequences, obligations, or strings attached.

For those whose medical debts are relieved, the relief is a gift from a detached and disinterested third party (RIP) as an act of generosity, so relief of the debt does not count as income to the debtor. We will not file a Form 1099-C with the IRS.

Due to HIPAA laws, RIP Medical Debt cannot disclose the names, contact information or any other specific details of the debt relief beneficiaries.

RIP Medical Debt cannot relieve debt by individual request.

While we would love to help everyone who needs assistance, RIP Medical Debt cannot abolish medical debt for specific individuals. We approach the problem of medical debt by acquiring large portfolios of debt to help thousands of people at once.

Because medical debt affects so many people who may not have debt accounts in the portfolios we purchase, we have compiled a list of resources that may be able to help in ways RIP Medical Debt cannot.

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