Medical debt a harsh reality for millions of Americans [Video]

(InvestigateTV) — A recent survey by Peterson-KFF found that Americans owe $220 billion in medical debt.

Patricia Kelmar with the U.S. Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) has been advocating that medical debt should be treated differently on credit reports.

“The problem when it comes to medical debt is medical debt is not an indicator of how fiscally responsible you are,” Kelmar explained.

Kelmar said even the most fiscally responsible person can rack up hundreds of thousands of dollars because of a serious injury or illness.

“People end up with thousands of dollars in medical bills, not because they went on a spending spree or they bought a fancy car,” she noted. “It’s because they got a cancer diagnosis or they were in a car accident. These are the kinds of things that put people into medical debt.”

That debt can impact financial security.

PIRG says nearly one in 10 people in the US have medical debt. This includes 11 …