Industry groups sue to stop Biden from banning medical debt on credit reports

(CNN) — Opposition is quickly forming against the Biden administration’s rule to ban medical debt from appearing on consumers’ credit reports, threatening the viability of what could be a popular regulation.

Two industry groups filed lawsuits last week seeking to block the rule, which was finalized by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau a week ago. Also, a leading House Republican lawmaker has promised to take action on the ban.

The rule ends the inclusion of medical debt on credit reports and prevents lenders from using certain medical information in loan decisions. It is expected to remove an estimated $49 billion in medical bills from the credit reports of about 15 million consumers, which would likely raise credit scores and make it easier for some people to obtain mortgages, according to the bureau.

The measure is scheduled to effect 60 days after it is published in the Federal Register.

But the Consumer Data Industry Association, which represents credit bureaus such as TransUnion, Experian and Equifax, and ACA International, which represents debt collectors, argue that the rule violates the Fair Credit Reporting Act and the bureau lacks the authority to issue such a ban.

“Americans are frustrated by medical bills. But frustration does not justify lawlessness,” ACA International wrote in its complaint, filed in the US District Court for Texas’ Southern District. “Here, a federal agency with no healthcare experience is exploiting this frustration by making a politically motivated regulation that prevents credit reporting agencies from showing accurate medical debts on credit reports. No agency has the power to do that.”

Consumer debt is important to underwriting, and eliminating consideration of medical debt will erode the value of consumer credit reports, the Consumer Data Industry Association wrote in its complaint, filed in the US District Court for Texas’ Eastern District.

“This leads to worse credit decisions, which in turn will harm consumers in the form of higher delinquency and default rates and increased costs of credit,” the complaint said, which noted the actions the three national credit bureaus took in 2022 to minimize the impact of unpaid medical bills on consumers.

In addition to the lawsuits, GOP Rep. French Hill, who chairs the House Financial Services Committee, last week blasted the bureau’s director, Rohit Chopra, for issuing the final rule. Congress has a limited period of time when it can review and rescind final rules, which has typically happened when a new president takes office.

“Instead of focusing on enhancing economic opportunity for all consumers, Chopra’s regulatory overreach will drive up costs to any American seeking medical care and have a devastating impact on consumers’ access to healthcare, particularly in rural areas,” Hill said in a statement. “I look forward to working with the incoming Trump Administration to rectify this misguided action.”

The bureau declined to comment on the lawsuits and Hill’s statement.

The rule is expected to be popular with consumers, who have long complained about the high cost of health care in the US. But Jaret Seiberg, financial services analyst for TD Cowen Washington Research Group, said in a report that the association laid out a strong argument in its lawsuit and will likely prevail.

The legal action also minimizes the “political risk for Team Trump and the GOP Congress as neither will be seen by voters as backing the inclusion of medical debt on credit reports,” said Seiberg, who supports the credit bureaus’ efforts to block the rule.

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