Page 6 October 6, 2016 EL SEGUNDO HERALD Medical Debt Rising Along With the Price Tag for Care By Rob McCarthy Medical debt is a fact of life for 60 million insured Americans who don’t have enough savings to cover the cost of an emergency-room visit or a hospital stay. If you have your health, you have everything. But, at what cost? Treatment for a heart condition in a California hospital is going to cost $70,000, though the patient isn’t charged the full amount. A bout with pneumonia will result in $70,000 in hospital charges, and a hip-replacement reaches $150,000, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The most-common procedures could set you back thousands of dollars. Medical debt has become a necessity for 20 percent of Americans and their families when faced with a health scare or a medical emergency. Half of U.S. adults have no money in savings since the Great Recession, and they’re going deeper in debt for housing, education and health care. The price tag for health care has risen 5 percent in a year. By comparison, medical debt hardly compares with the other consumer loans that people owe their creditors. Today’s households owe on average $20,000 in student loans, $103,000 in mortgages, and $3,800 for credit-card balances. The typical amount of medical debt is $1,200. Still, medical debt is the leading cause of bankruptcy in the country, according to credit experts. Medical debt - even high balances - won’t always show up on a credit report unless there’s been a non-payment or a delinquency. Medical debt isn’t regularly monitored by the credit agencies because physicians and hospitals don’t have a business relationship with them. The credit-scoring agencies recently placed less emphasis on medical debt, too. The exception is when a patient or family fails to pay a medical bill. Payment history comprises the biggest portion of the FICO credit score, so having a bill in collection seriously damages a credit score. A delinquency can cost borrowers their creditworthiness and subject them to high interest rates. The company responsible for consumer credit rating is FICO. The San Jose, Calif.-based company has updated its credit scorecard that retailers and banks use to make consumer loans. The FICO 9 version doesn’t include owed medical bills for under $100 either. At the time FICO 9 was rolled out last year, the company cautioned consumers that it would take time for the new credit-scoring system to be adopted by lenders. FICO told consumers with medical accounts in collection not to expect their credit scores to improve immediately. Some consumer advocates say unpaid medical bills are an unreliable predictor of risk. Some credit evaluators surveyed by the Federal Reserve in 2004 said they remove medical debt collections when they consider an applicant because they often represent disputes with an insurer and aren’t a good indicator of loan repayment. “People are making calculated decisions when taking on a car loan or credit card,” says Amy Traub, senior policy analyst at the think tank Demos. “With medical debt, it’s your life that’s at risk or your child’s life. It’s a catastrophic event.” FICO isn’t the only one giving patients with overdue doctor bills some needed protection. The Los Angeles District Attorney is shielding consumers from aggressive bill collectors in a civil lawsuit that could cost them $10 million. District Attorney Jackie Lacey, who oversees the South Bay, has filed a $10 million civil E.S.U.S.D. Accepted into National Network of Innovative School Districts The El Segundo Unified School District (ESUSD) is one of 19 school districts recently accepted into the League of Innovative Schools, a national coalition of forwardthinking school districts organized by Digital Promise, an independent, bipartisan nonprofit organization authorized by Congress to accelerate innovation in education. ESUSD was selected from a competitive and national pool of applicants based on its leadership, evidence of results, innovative vision for learning, and commitment to collaboration. ESUSD is on a journey to create innovative learning experiences that help students develop learner attributes necessary to be successful in careers of the future. The integration of Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics (STEAM) curriculum for all students in kindergarten through 12th grade serves as one example that clearly prepares students for careers of the future. In addition, ESUSD utilizes iPads through its 1:1 Individualized Technology Initiative for students in grades 6-12 to integrate educational technology and blended learning opportunities that align with rigorous standards. “It is tremendous honor for ESUSD to be selected as a member of the League of Innovative Schools along with only 18 other school districts nationwide,” said Dr. Melissa Moore, superintendent of the El Segundo Unified School District. “In order to remain competitive, ESUSD must evolve as an educational system in order to prepare our students with what is essential to be successful contributors in a dynamic global society. I believe this membership will positively impact ESUSD’s vision for student learning.” The League of Innovative Schools, launched in late 2011, accepts new members through an open application process once per year. With the new members, the League now includes 87 school districts in 33 states, representing nearly 3.3 million students. The full list of members can be found at digitalpromise. org/districts. “The League of Innovative Schools connects and rallies the most dynamic leaders of the nation’s school districts in order to advance positive change in public education,” said Sara Schapiro, senior director of the Digital Promise League of Innovative Schools. “As Digital Promise celebrates its fifth anniversary, we’re excited to welcome our new League members and amplify their insights to help others support teaching and learning with technology.” League members are represented by their superintendent, who commits to: • Attend biannual League meetings, which feature classroom visits, collaborative problem-solving, and relationship-building with peers and partners; • Join working groups on a broad range of topics relevant to the changing needs of school districts; • Engage with entrepreneurs to advance product development and meet district needs; • Support research that expands what we know about teaching and learning; and • Participate in the League’s professional learning community by connecting with other members online, in person, and at each other’s school districts. In addition to Superintendent Moore’s participation, there are also opportunities for other ESUSD school administrators, principals, and teachers to participate in League and Digital Promise initiatives. The League will officially welcome new members at its fall 2016 meeting on Nov. 2-4 in Baltimore, Maryland. For more information on the Digital Promise League of Innovative Schools, visit: digitalpromise.org/league. • See Medical Debt, page 18
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