Kentucky to wipe out $250M in medical debt under Beshear’s executive order

FRANKFORT, Ky. —

Gov. Andy Beshear signed an executive order Monday aimed at wiping out more than $250 million in medical debt for more than 130,000 Kentuckians.

The debt would be eliminated through a new initiative called the Team Kentucky Medical Debt Relief Program.

The order directs $2.5 million to Undue Medical Debt, a national nonprofit that buys medical debt from hospitals and collection agencies at a steep discount.

For Kentucky, that means $100 in medical debt will be erased for every one dollar spent by the state.

“Medical debt isn’t a choice – it’s what people are faced with after a serious accident, cancer diagnosis and more. Relieving this debt…