@ Kansas judge allows people to be arrested for medical debt

[followyourarrow]

@ TW: a child is mentioned

Title mine.

www.kmuw.org/post/when-medical-debt-collectors-decide-who-gets-arrested-welcome-coffeyville-kansas

I’m so horrified this is allowed. Once I get my thoughts together I’ll be sending this to my representatives asking them to support a Medicaid expansion at minimum.

[WOT?*]

And here I thought debtors prison was outlawed.

pugz - as the resident Kansan is there anything that we can do?


ETA: followyourarrow - please see the comment about @@@

[lolo]

Let's use the standard @@@ to signal discussion of children, in the thread title and in the discussion.

[orangeblossom]

It is sinful, but more than that it counterproductive. How can someone work to pay you back if you're in jail? Dumb. It's just like the states that revoke professional licenses when people are late with student loan payments.

This says nothing of the fact that people should NOT become bankrupt due to medical bills.

[aprilsails]

Omg the last paragraph made me gasp. These people are struggling with such small amounts. Obviously he has collected enough that his cut is significant.

[StrawberryBlondie]

Well, this just about as stupid for jailing someone for failure to pay child support.

And maddening. And wrong. But so, so stupid.

[orangeblossom]

Oct 18, 2019 17:48:56 GMT -5 StrawberryBlondie said:

Well, this just about as stupid for jailing someone for failure to pay child support.

And maddening. And wrong. But so, so stupid.

Exactly. How can someone pay you back if they're in jail?

I was watching Tamron Hall yesterday, and a judge, who fights for rehabilitation vs. Jail time for drugs, said something so simple, yet profound, ”We as a society are obsessed with punishment and making people feel bad. A person who is an addict is still an addict on day 91 when they’re freed from a 90 day sentence.” It's sickening.

[livinitup]

I am disgusted on so many levels.

[mrsukyankee]

This could have easily been my parents when I was young. We were fortunate that our GP would wait to get paid when they had a bit of cash (and gave discounts because he knew they needed it) and we had family who ended up paying for a few things, a few times. I can't imagine my gentle parents in jail because of any of that.

[picksthemusic]

This makes me want to vomit.

[wawa]

The shit we do to people over money is just fucking shameful.

[downtoearth]

This is so bad - and I thought parking tickets and bench warrants were stupid... now we are filling our county/city jails and fueling the private prison complex b/c people need medical care?!