City of St. Paul will eliminate medical debt for 32,000 residents

ST. PAUL, Minn. — The city of St. Paul is wiping out nearly $40 million in resident medical debt. City and state leaders, alongside medical debt relief partners, made the announcement Tuesday morning.

"It's a win for everyone," St. Paul Mayor Melvin Cater said. "And it's just the beginning."

32,000 people will receive a surprise notice in the mail from St. Paul and Undue Medical informing them their medical debt is gone and paid for by the city they live in.

Carter compares it to a move made five years ago in St. Paul public libraries, when the city eliminated $2.5 million in library debt.

"As a result immediate double digit growth in library use concentrated in our lowest income neighborhoods. We welcomed back 42,000 patrons to our libraries and saw 85,000 total items checked out on cards that had been previously blocked. Libraries are a community resource, and rather than punishing our community, we decided to take care of them. The policy worked," Carter said.

Similarly, Carter believes by eliminating medical debt, public health will greatly improve.

Lifelong Minnesotan, father of three, and veteran Walt Myers knows what lifting that weight feels like.

"It's life changing," Myers said. "I don't know how else to describe it."

Myers lost his wife, Sue, to breast cancer five years ago. He was left with a six-figure debt. With some help, every penny was forgiven.

"I was stunned, and I was incredibly relived," he said.

In all, St. Paul will spend $1.1 million, funded by the American Rescue Plan, to erase $110 million of medical debt city wide. But it's stories like Myers that motivate St. Paul and state leaders to do more.

"There's no reason why this should stop at St. Paul," Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said.

Ellison pointed to recent legislation changes with the passing of the Debt Fairness Act. He hopes more change can happen to impact more Minnesotans. He believes the ripple effect will improve overall public health.

"This is a public good," Ellison said. "This will actually enhance the health of the entire city for people who don't owe a penny."

The average medical debt getting erased in the round of 32,000 notices is $268. The largest is $104,972.

The pay off is part of the city's Medical Debt Reset Initiative.