Government agencies and nonprofit organizations provide free assistance with medical debt resolution. This guide covers all major institutional resources available, their services, eligibility requirements, and how to access them. All services verified operational as of October 2025.
For an overview of all options, see our complete medical debt relief guide.
Patient Advocate Foundation
Status: Fully operational
Website: https://www.patientadvocate.org Phone: (800) 532-5274 Hours: Monday-Friday 8:30am-5:00pm ET
What They Do: Free one-on-one case management for patients with chronic, life-threatening, or debilitating illnesses. Services include:
- Insurance denial appeals
- Billing dispute assistance
- Enrollment in government programs (Medicaid, Medicare)
- Financial assistance navigation
Specialized Programs:
- Co-Pay Relief: (866) 512-3861
- Financial Aid Funds: (855) 824-7941
Eligibility:
- ✅ Chronic, life-threatening, or debilitating diagnosis
- ✅ All ages
- ✅ All 50 states
- ✅ Completely free
NOT Eligible:
- ❌ Accidents without chronic conditions
- ❌ Workers' compensation cases
- ❌ Medical malpractice situations
- ❌ Acute non-chronic illnesses
- ❌ Mental health as sole diagnosis
How to Access: Call during business hours. Family members can call on behalf of patients. Case managers assigned for ongoing support.
Impact: In 2023, served patients with over 958 distinct diagnoses (chronic, life-threatening, and debilitating conditions)
Best For: Patients with serious ongoing medical conditions facing insurance denials or complex billing situations
Need Help Beyond Nonprofit Resources?
For instant bill analysis and overcharge detection, our automated tool provides immediate results without waiting for case managers.
Dollar For
Status: Fully operational and expanding
Website: https://www.dollarfor.org
What They Do: Free assistance applying for hospital charity care programs. Services include:
- Eligibility screening
- Document collection and preparation
- Application submission to hospitals
- Follow-up and appeals support
- English and Spanish available
How It Helps:
- Increases approval rates for charity care applications
- Many eligible patients struggle to navigate the process alone
- Eligibility typically starts around 200% Federal Poverty Level (varies by hospital)
- Discounted care often available at higher income levels
Requirements:
- Hospital bills only (not physician bills)
- Bills less than 240 days old (in most cases)
- No guarantee of approval—depends on hospital policy and your eligibility
Recent Development: Dollar For has been active in advocacy efforts to improve hospital charity care access and transparency across multiple states
How It Works: Visit website to begin screening. Answer questions about income, household size, and bills. If eligible, Dollar For guides you through document gathering and application completion.
Best For: Anyone with recent hospital bills who may qualify for charity care but needs application help
Important Limitation: Hospital bills only. Physician bills require separate negotiation.
Undue Medical Debt (formerly RIP Medical Debt)
Status: Fully operational (rebranded April 2024)
Website: https://www.unduemedicaldebt.org
What They Do: Purchase medical debt portfolios at steep discounts (approximately $1 donated = $100 debt relieved), then forgive the debt. Recipients receive notification letters. No tax consequences.
Qualification:
- Household income ≤400% Federal Poverty Level, OR
- Medical debt ≥5% of annual income
September 2025 Impact: Relieved debt for 14.72 million people totaling $22.8 billion
Source: Undue Medical Debt official statistics
CRITICAL LIMITATION
YOU CANNOT APPLY FOR THIS PROGRAM.
How it actually works:
- Organization receives donations
- Uses funds to purchase debt portfolios on secondary market
- Analyzes purchased debts to identify qualifying accounts
- Recipients identified through data analysis (18 months to 7+ years after service)
- Qualifying individuals receive notification letters
What This Means:
- Cannot request your specific debt be purchased
- Cannot speed up the process
- Cannot contact them about individual debts
- Notification comes as surprise if your debt qualifies
Why This Model: Debt buyers purchase large portfolios without selecting individual accounts. Undue Medical Debt cannot purchase specific debts—only what's available in secondary market portfolios.
Your Action: Don't wait for possible debt relief. Pursue other active options. If your debt eventually gets purchased and forgiven, consider it a bonus.
To Support Others: Donate at unduemedicaldebt.org. Donations help many people, but cannot be directed to specific individuals.
Don't Wait for Debt Relief
Take action now with our automated bill analysis tool. Find overcharges and billing errors immediately while you explore other relief options.
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)
Status: Fully operational
Website: https://www.consumerfinance.gov Phone: (855) 411-CFPB / (855) 411-2372
What They Provide: Federal agency resources for medical debt, including:
- Free sample letters for debt collection situations
- Complaint filing system
- Educational resources
- Consumer protection guidance
2025 Regulatory Update: CFPB rule banning medical debt from credit reports was vacated by federal court on July 11, 2025. However, voluntary credit bureau changes remain in effect:
- Paid medical debt not reported
- Medical debt under $500 not reported
- 1-year waiting period before unpaid medical debt reported
Free Sample Letters (Download at https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/category-debt-collection/):
- Debt Validation Request - Requires collector to verify debt is valid, amount is correct, and they're authorized to collect
- Debt Dispute Letter - Disputes all or part of the debt
- Cease Communication - Demands collector stop all contact
- Limit Communication - Sets boundaries on how/when collector can contact you
- Attorney Representation - Notifies collector you have legal representation
Format: Downloadable Word documents you customize with your information
Complaint System: File complaints about:
- Abusive debt collectors
- Credit reporting errors
- Unfair medical billing practices
CFPB forwards complaints to companies and monitors responses.
October 2024 Advisory: CFPB advisory opinion (effective January 2, 2025) reminded collectors that collecting medical debts violating federal/state law violates Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, including:
- Double billing
- Collecting unsubstantiated bills
- Fake charges/upcoding
- Misrepresenting consumer rights
- Collecting bills eligible for financial assistance without screening
Best For: Accessing free template letters, filing complaints against abusive collectors, understanding federal rights
State Attorney General Offices
Status: Most states have active consumer protection divisions
What They Provide:
- State consumer protection law enforcement
- Complaint investigation against debt collectors and providers
- Mediation services (some states)
- State-specific educational resources
Notable State Programs
California
- Website: https://oag.ca.gov
- Key Law: SB 1061 (effective January 1, 2025) prohibits most medical debt on credit reports
- Protection: 180-day wait before credit reporting or lawsuits
New York
- Website: https://ag.ny.gov
- Phone: Health Care Bureau (877) 305-5145
- Protections:
- Hospitals cannot report medical debt to credit bureaus
- Cannot sue within 180 days of discharge
- Cannot sue patients below 400% Federal Poverty Level
Minnesota
- Website: https://www.ag.state.mn.us
- Debt Fairness Act (effective October 2024): Banned credit reporting of medical debt, prohibited automatic transfer to spouse
- Note: Medical Debt Reset Act (proposed February 2025 with $5M to relieve $500M in debt) did not pass in the 2025 legislative session
Illinois
- Website: https://hfs.illinois.gov
- Program: $10M pilot for medical debt relief (potential to relieve up to $1B through partnership with Undue Medical Debt)
- Law (effective January 1, 2025): Credit reporting of medical debt unlawful
Georgia
- Website: https://consumer.georgia.gov
- Phone: 1-800-GEORGIA
- Resource: "Georgia Consumer Guide for Medical Bills and Debt"
How to Access Your State Resources
- Search "[Your State] Attorney General consumer protection"
- Or visit National Association of Attorneys General directory: https://www.naag.org
Look For:
- Consumer protection or health care division
- Medical debt complaint forms
- State-specific protection guides
- Balance billing law information
- Charity care requirements
Best For: Understanding state-specific protections, filing complaints about practices violating state law, accessing mediation
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
Status: Fully operational
Website: https://www.cms.gov
What They Provide:
Medicare Rate Lookup:
- Medicare Physician Fee Schedule shows what Medicare pays for specific procedure codes
- Compare your bills to Medicare rates for negotiation leverage
- Access under "Medicare Fee Schedules" at cms.gov
Hospital Price Transparency:
- Since January 2021, hospitals must publish standard charges
- Two files: "shoppable services" for consumers + comprehensive machine-readable file
- Find on hospital websites under "Price Transparency" or "Standard Charges"
- Shows hospital charges vs. insurance-negotiated rates
Medicare Appeals:
- If Medicare beneficiary with denied claim
- Five levels of appeal available
- First level: request within 120 days of denial
- Detailed instructions at cms.gov
Medicaid Resources:
- State-by-state contact information
- Eligibility guidelines
- Appeal processes
Best For: Comparing bills to Medicare rates, finding hospital published prices, understanding Medicare/Medicaid appeal rights
When These Resources Work Best
Ideal Situations:
- ✅ Small to medium bills (under $5,000)
- ✅ Obvious errors (duplicates, services not received)
- ✅ Straightforward financial assistance applications
- ✅ Simple insurance appeals
- ✅ You have time to manage the process
- ✅ Clear eligibility for charity care
When to Get Professional Help:
- ⚠️ Very large bills (over $10,000)
- ⚠️ Complex multi-provider situations
- ⚠️ Self-help attempts failed
- ⚠️ Facing lawsuit or legal action
- ⚠️ No time to handle yourself
- ⚠️ Complex medical necessity appeals
- ⚠️ Multiple types of errors requiring expertise
Combined Approach: Can use self-help AND professional help:
- Use free resources (Patient Advocate Foundation, Dollar For) for certain support
- Hire professional advocates for complex negotiations
- Handle simple disputes yourself
- Get professional help for insurance appeals
Next Steps
If these nonprofit and government resources don't resolve your situation or bills are too complex:
- Professional Billing Advocates - Human-assisted services (25-35% fees)
- Legal Services (Coming Soon) - If facing lawsuit
- Debt Settlement (Coming Soon) - For large debts in collections
- Hospital Programs (Coming Soon) - Charity care details
If these resources are working: Continue with dispute letters, financial assistance applications, and appeals. Document everything. Be persistent. Follow up regularly.
Need a Different Approach?
- Quick bill analysis: Try automated medical debt tools
- Just received a bill: Start with our first steps guide
- Understanding the process: See our guide on understanding medical debt
- All options: Return to the complete guide
Remember: Many successful debt resolutions come from persistent advocacy using nonprofit and government resources. Professional services are available if needed, but explore these institutional resources first for appropriate situations.