Relating to: medical debt abolition and making an appropriation. (FE)

This bill establishes a program to eliminate medical debt for eligible Wisconsin residents by creating a $10 million annual appropriation for the Department of Health Services to purchase and cancel outstanding medical bills. To qualify, residents must either have household income at or below 400 percent of the federal poverty line or owe medical debt equal to at least 5 percent of their annual household income. The department will identify eligible individuals, negotiate with healthcare providers and debt collectors to buy their outstanding balances, and then formally abolish the debt while minimizing tax consequences for recipients. The program prioritizes purchasing debt from providers serving low-income populations and those in areas disproportionately affected by medical debt, with annual reporting required to track the number of debts eliminated and demographic information of affected residents.