#HospitalFail- Nevada
As part of its #HospitalFail campaign, Consumers for Quality Care is looking beyond the headlines to highlight financially toxic hospital practices in states across the country. In Nevada, CQC found that:
- Nevadans face high medical debt: Nevadans face medical debt and related bankruptcy at rates higher than the national average — with overall personal bankruptcy the 8th highest in the nation. Medical debt in the state disproportionately impacts communities of color, with 26% of members of minority communities carrying past due medical debt, compared with only 17% of white residents.
- University Medical Center (UMC) of Southern Nevada is ramping up collections: UMC is one of the largest hospitals in Nevada. It is also a creditor in over two dozen bankruptcy cases according to the CourtLink database in court filings made in and after 2014. UMC has also gone after patients by placing liens on their homes. And in 2019, UMC publicly sought proposals for collections agencies to help them go after thousands of patients with medical debt every month.
- Medical debt is a driver of personal bankruptcy: Hospitals like UMC are employing these financially toxic practices despite the fact that medical debt is a leading cause of bankruptcy. In Nevada, which has the 8th highest rate of personal bankruptcy in the country, the impacts of medical debt on consumers is particularly troubling.
For more information on predatory practices of hospitals in Nevada and how they impact consumers, read the whitepaper: