Help a Black Mom of Two Pay Off Medical Debt
Donation protected
Medical bills are the reason the majority of people in the U.S. file for bankruptcy.
That's right. Over two-thirds of bankruptcies are related to unpaid medical bills according to recent research . Most families don't have enough money saved up for any kind of financial emergency, let alone thousands of dollars in medical costs.
Black people in the U.S. are significantly more likely than the general population to have past-due medical bills.
Nearly one in three Black adults have past-due medical bills. A recent article by the Urban Institute describes this as "a disconcertingly high number given the potential consequences for both physical and financial health." Despite increased access to health insurance made possible by the Affordable Care Act, Black people are still one and a half times more likely to be uninsured than white people. Having bills in collections destroys people's credit and makes it impossible to rebuild until the debt is cleared. Unpaid medical bills also stand in the way of accessing needed health care and medicine. Unpaid medical bills are stressful, and they can also be deadly!
The racial wealth gap contributes to Black families bearing a disproportionate burden of medical debt.
White families have, on average, ten times the wealth of Black families . This horrific inequity is a result of 400 years of oppression that didn't end with the Emancipation Proclamation. U.S. policies and practices have purposefully blocked Black families from building wealth. Jim Crow laws, economic exploitation, exclusion from public programs, and redlining have all contributed to the wealth gap. The wealth gap is why Black families are more likely to have medical debt than white families. Low wealth means not having money saved or assets to sell when medical bills come due. The result is financial ruin. The cause is racism.
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This GoFundMe has been set up to help Chennel* pay off her medical debt so she can rebuild her credit and have greater financial security. Chennel is a Black woman and a mother to two young sons. She is only two years out from her experience of being homeless in the aftermath of leaving an abusive relationship with only her two children and a breakdown-prone car. She has made extraordinary moves to secure her sons’ livelihoods, but as you know it takes so much more time and money to build sustainable security.
Chennel has worked so hard and come so far. But she still has some hurdles to overcome to become more financially secure. One of those hurdles is a big medical bill in collections that has tanked her credit. Until she has paid this debt, she will not be able to start down the path to rebuilding her credit. A low credit score stands in the way of Chennel's financial stability because a lower score limits the choices available to her. As she improves her credit, she will have more financial options and, in turn, she and her children will have more stability and security.
Please, give BIG and give OFTEN to this campaign! Share it with your friends and family. Together, we can support Chennel and her sons in having greater autonomy over their financial future.
*Chennel uses a pseudonym to protect herself and her children's privacy due to the threat of domestic violence.
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Sources:
1. https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/11/this-is-the-real-reason-most-americans-file-for-bankruptcy.html
2. https://www.kff.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/8806-the-burden-of-medical-debt-results-from-the-kaiser-family-foundation-new-york-times-medical-bills-survey.pdf
3. https://www.urban.org/urban-wire/past-due-medical-debt-problem-especially-black-americans
4. https://www.urban.org/research/publication/who-gained-health-insurance-coverage-under-aca-and-where-do-they-live/view/full_report
5. https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2013/06/10/188951911/african-americans-remain-hardest-hit-by-medical-bills
6. https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/06/04/economic-divide-black-households/
7. https://www.brookings.edu/research/closing-the-racial-wealth-gap-requires-heavy-progressive-taxation-of-wealth/
That's right. Over two-thirds of bankruptcies are related to unpaid medical bills according to recent research . Most families don't have enough money saved up for any kind of financial emergency, let alone thousands of dollars in medical costs.
Black people in the U.S. are significantly more likely than the general population to have past-due medical bills.
Nearly one in three Black adults have past-due medical bills. A recent article by the Urban Institute describes this as "a disconcertingly high number given the potential consequences for both physical and financial health." Despite increased access to health insurance made possible by the Affordable Care Act, Black people are still one and a half times more likely to be uninsured than white people. Having bills in collections destroys people's credit and makes it impossible to rebuild until the debt is cleared. Unpaid medical bills also stand in the way of accessing needed health care and medicine. Unpaid medical bills are stressful, and they can also be deadly!
The racial wealth gap contributes to Black families bearing a disproportionate burden of medical debt.
White families have, on average, ten times the wealth of Black families . This horrific inequity is a result of 400 years of oppression that didn't end with the Emancipation Proclamation. U.S. policies and practices have purposefully blocked Black families from building wealth. Jim Crow laws, economic exploitation, exclusion from public programs, and redlining have all contributed to the wealth gap. The wealth gap is why Black families are more likely to have medical debt than white families. Low wealth means not having money saved or assets to sell when medical bills come due. The result is financial ruin. The cause is racism.
***
This GoFundMe has been set up to help Chennel* pay off her medical debt so she can rebuild her credit and have greater financial security. Chennel is a Black woman and a mother to two young sons. She is only two years out from her experience of being homeless in the aftermath of leaving an abusive relationship with only her two children and a breakdown-prone car. She has made extraordinary moves to secure her sons’ livelihoods, but as you know it takes so much more time and money to build sustainable security.
Chennel has worked so hard and come so far. But she still has some hurdles to overcome to become more financially secure. One of those hurdles is a big medical bill in collections that has tanked her credit. Until she has paid this debt, she will not be able to start down the path to rebuilding her credit. A low credit score stands in the way of Chennel's financial stability because a lower score limits the choices available to her. As she improves her credit, she will have more financial options and, in turn, she and her children will have more stability and security.
Please, give BIG and give OFTEN to this campaign! Share it with your friends and family. Together, we can support Chennel and her sons in having greater autonomy over their financial future.
*Chennel uses a pseudonym to protect herself and her children's privacy due to the threat of domestic violence.
****
Sources:
1. https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/11/this-is-the-real-reason-most-americans-file-for-bankruptcy.html
2. https://www.kff.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/8806-the-burden-of-medical-debt-results-from-the-kaiser-family-foundation-new-york-times-medical-bills-survey.pdf
3. https://www.urban.org/urban-wire/past-due-medical-debt-problem-especially-black-americans
4. https://www.urban.org/research/publication/who-gained-health-insurance-coverage-under-aca-and-where-do-they-live/view/full_report
5. https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2013/06/10/188951911/african-americans-remain-hardest-hit-by-medical-bills
6. https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/06/04/economic-divide-black-households/
7. https://www.brookings.edu/research/closing-the-racial-wealth-gap-requires-heavy-progressive-taxation-of-wealth/
Organizer and beneficiary
Allie Dulles
Organizer
Seattle, WA
Chennel Lewis
Beneficiary
