Churches wipe out millions in medical debt for others

[guillaumeb]

From the article:

Churches in Maryland, Illinois, Virginia, Texas and elsewhere have been reaching the same conclusion. RIP Medical Debt, a nonprofit organization based in Rye, N.Y., that arranges such debt payoffs, reports a recent surge in participation from primarily Christian places of worship. Eighteen have worked with RIP in the past year and a half, said Scott Patton, the nonprofit’s director of development. More churches are joining in as word spreads.
The mountain of bills they are trying to clear is high. Medical debt contributes to two-thirds of bankruptcies, according to the American Journal of Public Health. And a 2018 Kaiser Family Foundation/New York Times poll showed that of the 26% of people who reported problems paying medical bills, 59% reported a major life impact, such as taking an extra job, cutting other household spending or using up savings. (Kaiser Health News is an editorially independent program of the foundation.)

To read more:

https://religionnews.com/2019/06/05/churches-wipe-out-millions-in-medical-debt-for-others/

[LonePirate]

1. This is exactly what churches should be doing. Televangelists should follow their lead.

[guillaumeb]

2. I agree.

But, in my view, many televangelists are businesspeople first.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

3. Yes, this is the right thing for churches to do and is in keeping with the basic message

of Christianity. But the televangelists are in it to enrich themselves, not help the poor.

[guillaumeb]

5. Sadly, this seems correct.

Care for the stranger.

[CDerekGo]

7. but, but, but

Televangelists need those Private Jets....

[msongs]

4. churches should be taxed like every other business nt

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

6. Maybe with deductions for aid to the poor.

No deduction for the private jet.

[trotsky]

8. Great, but are they doing this because of their religion, or because they are good people?

What do you think, guillaumeb?

[Major Nikon]

10. "human behavior" works both ways except those who are ate up with the doublethink

Then again, it could just be that priests raping children need another "counterpoint".

[guillaumeb]

13. Both. eom

[trotsky]

20. And when they do bad things because of their religion?

Is the answer STILL "both"?

[guillaumeb]

25. People do good things and bad thing because

that is what they decide to do.

[trotsky]

37. Thank you for confirming your double standard. n/t

[guillaumeb]

41. Interesting display of textual analysis.

And that explains much of your Biblical analysis as well.

[trotsky]

42. It is clear from your answers.

You think religion can motivate people to do good things, but never motivate them to do bad things.

If that is an erroneous summation of your beliefs, please correct me.

[guillaumeb]

43. And it is clear from your answers that my statement is correct.

Correction is impossible.

[trotsky]

44. What statement is correct?

I'm asking you point blank if you think religion can ONLY motivate people to do good things.

Since you won't answer, I can only assume you hold the double standard position.

[Major Nikon]

27. As expected the answer to your question is doublethink

A religionist does something good. Thanks religion!

A religionist does something bad. Human nature!

[trotsky]

38. Naturally.

I expected nothing more.

[Major Nikon]

40. Consistently inconsistent

[Act_of_Reparation]

9. Charity or cynical recruiting tactic?

Guess we'll never know. At least with the areligious, one knows where we stand.

[guillaumeb]

14. Laughable logic.

But you are entitled to your beliefs.

[Act_of_Reparation]

21. How can you tell?

[MineralMan]

11. That's good of them to do.

However, they are buying the very least expensive debts, the ones that are all but written off. The people who had that debt were never going to pay, so the cost of buying that debt is a tiny percentage of the debt itself.

Still, it's a nice gesture on the parts of those churches. But, it's important to note that such buyouts do nothing to help people in earlier stages of dealing with medical debt. It only relieves people who could never possibly their debts. They're buying debt that even the sleaziest collection agencies don't want to bother with, due to the impossibility of collecting on them.

[guillaumeb]

12. It does not solve the real issue.

That the US healthcare system is dysfunctional.

[MineralMan]

15. Exactly...

[Lordquinton]

16. Does it really count when "churches" are also responsible for creating the debt?

It's great to see people doing this sort of thing, but it's a band-aid on a broken limb. "Churches" again do far more harm than good in this area, giving them cover with these types of stories doesn't help the situation.

[guillaumeb]

17. The US healthcare system is profit centered.

That is the problem.

[Lordquinton]

18. So churches that enter into it are just there to make a profit?

They also enforce their beliefs on people they give treatment too, usually in the case of women's health care. Is that a systemic issue or a theological one?

[guillaumeb]

19. I think that most of the church run hospitals are non-profit.

But the problem with the US healthcare system is one of access and cost.

[Lordquinton]

22. You're confusing non-profit with not-for-profit

Are the religious hospitals doing anything to address the problem with access and cost? Or are they just going with it, while also using it to enforce their beliefs on a captive audience?

[AtheistCrusader]

28. 10 of the 11 regional hospitals in the greater Seattle area are church run.

You're confusing non-profit for 'end-run around Roe Vs Wade' as these hospitals have had to cease or outsource abortion, physician assisted suicide, tubal ligation, and other family planning to conform to Catholic medical ethics as they are wholly taken over, jointly operated, or joint billing.

You really don't know what you're talking about here. The RCC takeover has not made medical care cheaper. That's not why they are doing it.


https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/ties-between-uw-peacehealth-worry-medical-trainees-grad-students/

Overlake is the last hospital standing, free and unfettered by the Religious and Ethical Directives for Catholic Health Care (ERDs).

[guillaumeb]

29. You said:

You really don't know what you're talking about here. The RCC takeover has not made medical care cheaper. That's not why they are doing it.

If anyone her had previously made that point, I would agree with you.

But no one did.

Buying up debt is not making medical care cheaper. It is removing a debt from someone. As my earlier responses should indicate, the two things are separate issues.

[AtheistCrusader]

32. You said

"But the problem with the US healthcare system is one of access and cost."

Access is part and parcel of RCC terminating reproductive care for religious reasons.
Which they are doing. Right now.

[guillaumeb]

34. Yes, I did say that.

But I never said what you claimed that I said.

And that was my issue with your assertion.

[AtheistCrusader]

36. You misunderstand

"But the problem with the US healthcare system is one of access and cost."

I'm not saying you said anything. I'm addressing this claim, which is harmed by catholic involvement (access) and neutral (cost).

[Bretton Garcia]

23. Churches spread anti-medical, anti-science ideas constantly

Giving some money to hospitals helps. But? It may be that giving a million times more, would still not make up for the damage done by their disinformation/faith healing campaigns, etc..

[Act_of_Reparation]

24. We are to believe one isolated case of charity somehow offsets the damage...

...done by religious organizations that have for centuries prioritized their station above public health.

[guillaumeb]

26. And do the doctors at the church owned hospitals

do so as well?

[AtheistCrusader]

30. They are constrained from offering services, or diagnoses that run counter to Catholic medical

ethics rules.

That means, no tubal ligation. No abortion. Etc.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/10/health/catholic-hospitals-procedures.html

[guillaumeb]

31. Which is not the same thing as the other poster asserted. eom

[AtheistCrusader]

33. Read harder.

[guillaumeb]

35. Missing the point. eom

[MineralMan]

39. Yes, you are. eom