Good People Doing Great Things

This story made me feel real good. So this is literally a feel-good story:

The more than 30 proud, self-described gutter-pagan, mostly queer dirtbags in their early 30s gathered ‘round Friday night bearing shots of Svedka and Roman candles and sparklers, as the glow of Camden kissed their faces from across the river. The thing that drew them to what’s affectionately known as Chicken Pier was about to be burned to bits.

There was just one hiccup. The giant “medical billing statement” was not responding to the long candle lighter South Philly union organizer Claire Hirschberg was aggressively taking to its bottom-left corner.

Someone sprinted for the backup lighter fluid and someone else led a “debt is hell” chant.

The jubilant crowd handed back a “let it burn” in response.

While the giant bill was fake, it represented a very real accomplishment. The group raised more than $17,000, which purchased more than $1.6 million in medical debt owed by Philadelphians, according to their nonprofit partner RIP Medical Debt.

When hospitals or physician groups have delinquent debts they have little chance of collecting on, they’ll typically go to what’s called the secondary market and sell their portfolios for pennies on the dollar. This is where collectors can come in and begin hounding patients anew. Enter RIP Medical Debt. The nonprofit helps people like Hirschberg and fellow campaign organizer Lou Garner buy portfolios with the explicit goal of forgiving outstanding balances. The relief comes with no strings attached.

RIP Medical Debt has only grown since its launch. It partnered with HBO talk show host and comedian John Oliver in 2016 to clear $15 million in medical debt and philanthropist MacKenzie Scott has donated $80 million since 2020. The company has facilitated more than $10 billion in medical debt relief. And the idea of buying debt is catching on in local government.

Just this month, Pittsburgh City Council passed legislation that allows them to contract with RIP and use up to $1 million in American Rescue Plan funds to help forgive an estimated $115 million in debt for city residents.

This is something we can all do.  Does anybody know if there are similar efforts taking place here in Delaware?  I mean, I can certainly identify with ‘gutter pagans’.  What these folks did is what we Jews call a mitzvah.  A huge meaningful mitzvah.