BATON ROUGE – More than 17,000 capital area residents are beginning to receive notices that some or all of their outstanding medical debt is being erased. 

The program, a partnership between the Huey and Angelina Wilson Foundation, Capital Area United Way and nonprofit Undue Medical Debt, will abolish nearly $22 million in medical debt for families in Ascension, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Livingston, Iberville, Pointe Coupee, St. Helena, St. James, West Baton Rouge and West Feliciana parishes.

Residents whose debt has been abolished will receive a letter from Undue Medical Debt via postal mail starting this week, a news release said. According to the release, data shows that 11% of Louisianans have medical debt in a given year.

"It's horrible for the population," Jan Moller with Invest in Louisiana said. "It's horrible for the economy. When you're sick you can't go to work or take care of your kids."

The core of Jan Moller's work deals with how tax and budget issues affect communities and how to help vulnerable populations.

"Nearly one in five Capital Area residents is living in poor or fair health, yet too many are still forced to delay or skip care because of real or perceived financial barriers," Vice President of People-Centered Initiatives at Huey and Angelina Wilson Foundation Tristi Charpentier said. "When people lack the means or the insurance coverage they need, they’re left to navigate illness or conditions alone. Access to affordable, high-quality healthcare isn’t just a policy goal — it’s a lifeline our friends and neighbors urgently need."

The group said that there is no application process for this medical debt relief initiative and that debt relief depends on community-minded providers like hospitals and secondary market partners who choose to partner and sell qualifying medical debt to Undue Medical Debt. 

To qualify, residents must have an income at or below 400% of the federal poverty level (just over $100,000 for a family of three) or have medical debt that equals 5% of their income or more. This is a one-time abolishment to help remove the financial and emotional burden of unpayable medical debts, Undue said.

"I’m grateful to the Huey and Angelina Wilson Foundation for their partnership in bringing this transformative medical debt relief to Capital Area families," President and CEO of Undue Medical Debt Allison Sesso said. "Medical debt is a burden that no one chooses — people don’t choose to get sick, injured or have a chronic condition. This initiative will provide both financial and emotional relief to 17,000 residents, helping those least able to pay these burdensome debts of necessity. We hope recipients feel encouraged to re-engage with the health care system without fear of the cost."

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