A local church is working to pay off nearly $2 million of personal medical debt belonging to Chatham County residents.
Chapel in the Pines Presbyterian Church launched the fundraising campaign in May, partnering with the national nonprofit Undue Medical Debt, which buys and relieves medical debt belonging to those least able to pay.
“Much like a borrowing company or a lending organization, they buy medical debt that hospitals have already written off,” CITP Pastor Andrew-Taylor Troutman told 97.9 The Hill last month. “So they can pay, on average, a penny for every dollar that is due, that people wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford.”
For CITP, that means raising $20,000 would retire the full $1.8 million of medical debt in Chatham County. Taylor-Troutman said the idea for the campaign stemmed from seeing similar efforts by churches in Wake County and Winston-Salem, describing it as a way to “wipe the slate clean” for more than 700 county residents.
“I get calls all the time at the church, people who have fallen behind on their mortgage, their rent, electricity bills,” Taylor-Troutman said. “And almost every time, it’s because there’s been a medical event involved. Someone’s gotten sick, a child, or they’ve gotten hurt, had to go to the hospital, couldn’t work. It really is a crippling problem in our society.”
Andrew Taylor-Troutman (right) speaking with 97.9 The Hill’s Andrew Stuckey on May 28. (Photo by Andrew Stuckey/Chapel Hill Media Group.)
Founded in 2014, Undue has already relieved more than $3.9 billion in medical debt for more than a million qualifying families in North Carolina — those who have an income at or below 400% of the federal poverty level or have medical debt that is 5% of their income or more. Any additional funds raised by the CITP campaign will go towards the Triangle region’s $40 million existing medical debt.
“We’re excited to relieve this debt for our neighbors,” Mission and Service Committee Chairperson for Chapel in the Pines Jeff Olson shared in a May 25 release about the effort. “We encourage churches and other organizations to join our campaign or start their own campaigns, so we can bring further relief to those in need in the Triangle area.”
Rather than insurance status or poverty, medical debt is more often caused by getting sick, serious illness, or other accidents beyond a person’s control, according to the release. The leading cause of bankruptcies in the U.S., those with medical debt are also more likely to experience anxiety and depression, while also delaying or skipping mental healthcare altogether.
“We believe that no one should face financial ruin just because they got sick, but unfortunately that’s the situation for millions in this country who are crushed by medical debt,” Undue Medical Debt President and CEO Allison Sesso said in the release. “That’s why I’m thrilled to partner with Chapel in the Pines as they work to relieve medical debt for their neighbors and shine a light on this important issue.
“This partnership will help those least able to pay these burdensome debts of necessity,” she continued. “We hope recipients will feel encouraged to re-engage with the health care system without fear of the cost.”
The collaboration with Undue is the church’s sole philanthropic effort. Others include donating $75,000 annually to various partner organizations, like Tiny Homes Village at the UNC Farm at Penny Lane, the Chatham Alliance, and Chatham Literacy. This year, the church has also raised about $4,000 for CORA Food Pantry. Taylor-Troutman said tackling the nationwide medical debt issue means addressing its underlying systemic causes, but he expressed how he hopes the campaign funds will make a “real difference” for those in Chatham County.
“We follow the ancient rabbi who said ‘judge not, lest ye be judged,’ and there’s something about that here,” Taylor-Troutman said. “We’re not there to ask questions about how people get behind. We see this is a real opportunity to help, and we want to lean into that and encourage others to come alongside.”
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