Gov. Pritzker Announces Over $1 Billion in Medical Debt Relief for Illinoisans

SPRINGFIELD – Governor Pritzker today announced that the State of Illinois has erased over $1.1 billion in medical debt for more than half a million Illinoisans through the Illinois Medical Debt Relief Program. The announcement comes ahead of Governor Pritzker’s State of the State and proposed budget address tomorrow, previewing a focus on improving affordability.

With rising costs and devastating impacts from Trump’s Budget Bill on healthcare accessibility, Governor Pritzker’s initiative is providing relief to hundreds of thousands of Illinoisans in all 102 counties in the state. Initial analysis demonstrates that people who have received relief had on average over $1,200 in debt eliminated — with some individual patients benefitting from tens or hundreds of thousands in relief, including one individual receiving $300,000 in debt relief.

“No one should be forced to choose between life-saving care and feeding their families, which is why we launched the Illinois Medical Debt relief program,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “As part of my Affordability Agenda, we’ve helped a half million Illinoisans in every corner of the state and relieved $1 billion in medical debt. With Trump’s policies wreaking havoc on working families, impactful programs like this are more important than ever before.” ​ ​ ​

“In Illinois, we believe healthcare is a human right — and affordability is central to that promise,” said Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton. “No one should ever delay care because of cost or face financial ruin simply because they got sick. The Illinois Medical Debt Relief Program is about lifting that burden, strengthening families, and ensuring every Illinoisan can seek the care they need. When we make healthcare more affordable, we build healthier and stronger communities.”

Just 15 months after the program’s first round of debt erasure — which benefitted 52,745 Illinois residents and relieved more than $72 million in debts – this initiative achieved the goal of eliminating $1 billion in medical debt well ahead of its original multi-year schedule.

Administered by the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS), the program reflects the Governor’s broader commitment to making life more affordable for families. With medical costs and premiums soaring nationwide, combined with a severe rollback of affordable healthcare options due to Trump’s Budget Bill, supporting Illinoisans through medical debt relief is more important than ever.

Even as medical debt remains one of the leading causes of bankruptcy nationwide, the Trump Administration is actively working to prevent states from barring medical debt from credit scores and reports — hindering economic mobility for people struggling with medical debt. Meanwhile, Illinois continues to take tangible action for working families who are managing these burdens.

Every dollar the state has invested in its Medical Debt Relief Program has yielded over $100 in medical debt relief for Illinoisans. Illinois has committed approximately $10 million to eliminate more than $1 billion in debt — an extraordinary return on investment. Illinois will continue to use the remaining program funds — approximately $5 million — to acquire and relieve outstanding, un-payable medical debt.

Medical Debt Relief Program – By the Numbers:

Illinois is among the first states to take statewide action to relieve medical debt.

“Medical debt can create a cascade of issues that go beyond the immediate financial challenges experienced by those who are burdened by it,” said HFS Director Elizabeth M. Whitehorn. “This program has improved the lives of families across the state, and we look forward to continuing to expand its reach this year.”

The program is operated in partnership with Undue Medical Debt, a national nonprofit that purchases bundled medical debts — often for pennies on the dollar — mostly from health systems, as well as secondary debt markets, covering past owed bills for residents with documented financial need.

To be eligible for relief, individuals do not need to apply — they must be Illinois residents with a household income at or below 400% of the federal poverty level, or with medical debts equal to 5% or more of their annual household income.

Today’s announcement includes debts incurred in urban, suburban, and rural healthcare settings. Among the patients who benefit from the program are those who have been treated at Advent Midwest Health, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, Loyola Medicine, University of Chicago Medicine, the Vituity physician group, and more.

“I’m very proud of our work with the state of Illinois, especially as we reach the milestone of $1 billion of burdensome medical debt erased for families doing their best to make ends meet,” said Allison Sesso, Undue Medical Debt President and CEO. “No one chooses to get sick or be born with a chronic condition and accessing healthcare should never lead to financial ruin. I’m hopeful this debt relief will allow families to reengage with the healthcare system while we advocate for upstream policy solutions to the medical debt crisis."

Medical debt relief is source-based, meaning that only qualifying medical debts sold from participating partners, such as hospitals, are eligible for relief. Eligible Illinois residents do not need to apply for assistance. Households that will have medical debt eliminated will receive notification letters in a branded Undue envelope with a State of Illinois seal. Letters for recipients of the latest round of medical debt elimination are expected to arrive in the coming weeks.

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