Columbia in top 10 to benefit after changes to medical debt reporting

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - The residents of Columbia are among the biggest beneficiaries after a change in how medical debt is reported.

On July 1, 2022 changes went into effect with the major credit bureaus of Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.

All medical debt in collections that was paid off will be removed from credit report history
New unpaid medical debts will not appear on reports for a year to give time to pay off without hurting credit scores
Starting in 2023 medical debts smaller than $500 will not appear on credit reports.

A study by Wallethub said Columbia is the 7th greatest beneficiary in the changes nationwide. In total, it is expected up to 70% of all medical collection debt will be removed from credit reports. Researchers compared 182 cities using TransUnion data.

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Researchers reported up to 19% of people in the city have some type of medical debt in collections. Columbia residents are reported to have 14% of people with less than $500 in medical collections that started below $500.

The researchers also found 16% of Columbia residents have at least one paid off medical debt and 1% of the city has medical debt less than a year old.

Source: WalletHub

Previous investigation found up to $390 million has been garnished from South Carolinian pay checks and tax refunds from unpaid medical bills.

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