Medical Debt and Your Credit Score: What You Need to Know
Medical debt is the leading cause of personal bankruptcy in the United States. But the rules around how it affects your credit score have changed dramatically in recent years — and many people are paying bills they don't legally have to.
Important: Don't pay a medical bill without first verifying it's accurate. Studies show up to 80% of medical bills contain errors. Paying a wrong bill doesn't mean you get that money back.
Verify your bill before you pay
BillScan AI checks for errors in 15 seconds — before debt affects your credit.
What Changed in 2023 and 2025
For years, medical debt was treated the same as credit card debt on credit reports — a collection account could tank your score by 100+ points. That changed significantly:
2023 — Major credit bureau changes
Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion stopped including medical debt under $500 on credit reports. They also extended the grace period before medical debt appears from 6 months to 1 year, giving patients more time to resolve billing issues and insurance claims.
2025 — CFPB final rule
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finalized a rule to remove all medical debt from credit reports entirely. Check the current status of this rule as legal challenges may affect its implementation timeline.
How Medical Debt Gets on Your Credit Report
A medical bill doesn't appear on your credit report just because you owe it. The process goes like this: you receive a bill, you don't pay it, the provider or hospital sends it to a collections agency, and then the collections agency reports it to the credit bureaus. This process typically takes several months, which gives you time to dispute errors, negotiate, or set up a payment plan.
The key insight: if you dispute a bill — even just by requesting an itemized statement or identifying an error — most providers will not send the debt to collections while the dispute is pending. Use this to your advantage.
What to Do If Medical Debt Appears on Your Report
Request verification
You have the right under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to request written verification of any debt. The collector must provide this before continuing collection efforts.
Check the bill for errors first
Before paying anything, get the itemized bill and check every charge. Paying an incorrect debt means the money is gone — you can't get it back after the fact.
Dispute directly with the credit bureau
If a medical debt on your report is inaccurate or below $500, you can dispute it directly with Equifax, Experian, or TransUnion through their online portals.
Negotiate a pay-for-delete
If the debt is valid, some collection agencies will agree to remove it from your credit report in exchange for payment. Get this agreement in writing before paying.
The Most Important Thing You Can Do Right Now
Before any of the above matters — verify the bill is correct. You cannot get money back after you've paid a wrong charge. BillScan AI checks every CPT code on your bill against official Medicare rates and flags overcharges, duplicates, and other errors before you spend a dollar.
Check your bill before it becomes debt
BillScan AI scans for errors, overcharges, and disputable items in about 15 seconds — so you know exactly what you legitimately owe.
Try It Free — No Card NeededFirst scan is free. No credit card required.