helping each other

Gov. JB Pritzker said during a news conference on Tuesday, March 3, that the Illinois Medical Debt Relief Program has erased $1.1 billion in medical debt, with patients receiving an average of about $1,200 in relief. Cook County’s Medical Debt Relief Initiative has eliminated an additional $820 million in medical debt since it launched its program in 2022.

“Countless people across the state are living proof that this program is more than clearing numbers on a ledger,” Pritzker said. “It is about giving people the freedom and the opportunity to build and live their lives. Lifting the burden of medical debt restores hope. It provides a sense of security.”

Yet moved by the sense that the medical debts their neighbors faced were deeply unfair, members of Trinity Moravian, no matter their politics, rushed to write $25 or $50 checks to pay off the bills. They helped advance a movement by churches across the state and the country, and they inspired North Carolina government officials to tackle medical debt. The effort drew plaudits from conservative radio host Glenn Beck.