Medical Debt Rights by State
Know your rights. Every state has different laws protecting patients from unfair medical billing, aggressive collections, and surprise bills. Find your state below.
Alabama
No state law - Federal No Surprises Act applies
Alaska
No state law - Federal applies
Arizona
HB 2833 (2020) - Emergency service balance billing protection
Arkansas
No state law - Federal No Surprises Act applies
California
AB 72 (2017) - Nation's strongest surprise billing protection
Colorado
HB 19-1174 (2019) - Emergency and in-network facility protections
Connecticut
HB 5609 (2015) - Emergency and out-of-network protection
Delaware
Limited state law - Federal applies
District of Columbia
DC Law 22-266 (2019) - Comprehensive protection
Florida
HB 221 (2016) - Limited to HMO plans
Georgia
HB 888 (2020) - Emergency services and facility fees
Hawaii
Limited state law - Federal applies
Idaho
No state law - Federal applies
Illinois
Network Adequacy and Transparency Act + HB 317
Indiana
No state law - Federal applies
Iowa
No state law - Federal applies
Kansas
No state law - Federal applies
Kentucky
No state law - Federal applies
Louisiana
No state law - Federal applies
Maine
LD 1865 (2020) - Emergency services protection
Maryland
HB 1122 (2017) - Comprehensive protection
Massachusetts
Chapter 224 (2012) - One of first comprehensive laws
Michigan
No state law - Federal applies
Minnesota
Limited state law - Federal applies
Mississippi
No state law - Federal applies
Missouri
SB 579 (2021) - Limited emergency protections
Montana
No state law - Federal applies
Nebraska
No state law - Federal applies
Nevada
AB 469 (2019) - Emergency and ground ambulance protection
New Hampshire
HB 1809 (2018) - Emergency services protection
New Jersey
P.L. 2018 c.32 - Comprehensive out-of-network protection
New Mexico
HB 147 (2019) - Comprehensive surprise billing law
New York
Emergency Medical Services & Surprise Bills Law (2015) - PIONEER
North Carolina
No state law - Federal applies
North Dakota
No state law - Federal applies
Ohio
No state law - Federal applies
Oklahoma
No state law - Federal applies
Oregon
HB 2524 (2019) - Emergency services and facility fees
Pennsylvania
No comprehensive state law - Federal applies
Rhode Island
Limited state law - Federal applies
South Carolina
No state law - Federal applies
South Dakota
No state law - Federal applies
Tennessee
No state law - Federal applies
Texas
SB 1264 (2019) - One of strongest state surprise billing laws
Utah
No state law - Federal applies
Vermont
Act 77 (2019) - Comprehensive balance billing protection
Virginia
HB 1251 (2020) - Emergency services protection
Washington
HB 1065 (2019) - Comprehensive surprise billing law
West Virginia
No state law - Federal applies
Wisconsin
Limited state law - Federal applies
Wyoming
No state law - Federal applies
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Federal Protections (All States)
No Surprises Act (2022)
Protects patients from surprise bills for emergency services and out-of-network providers at in-network facilities. Requires good faith cost estimates.
501(r) Charity Care
All nonprofit hospitals must have written financial assistance policies and cannot take extraordinary collection actions without eligibility screening.
FDCPA Protection
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act prohibits debt collectors from using abusive, unfair, or deceptive practices to collect debts.
FCRA Credit Reporting
Medical debt under $500 cannot be reported to credit bureaus. Paid medical debt must be removed within 45 days.