FILE - Medical charges are seen in Temple Hills, Md., Monday, June 26, 2023. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said Tuesday, June 11, 2024, it is planning a rule that would remove medical bills from credit reports and prevent lenders from making decisions based on medical information. y a car or take on a mortgage.
"No one should be denied access to economic opportunity simply because they experienced a medical emergency," Vice President Kamala Harris said during a conference call laying out the planned rule. The CFPB has said that medical debt can be a poor predictor of whether someone is likely to repay a loan. Those expenses often are not planned like a car or home purchase, and patients may have little control over the progress of a serious illness.