A big pile of bills
Published on April 11, 2008
Mark had recently gotten out of prison and was taking the necessary steps to become a contributing member of society. It was then that he suddenly began to feel ill and had to be hospitalized. It was the beginning of a long and expensive ordeal. Doctors were unable to diagnose his illness. He returned home only to return to the hospital several more times. All of these trips were without insurance and the medical bills piled up beyond his means to pay them. Under the weight of this debt, Mark turned to The Center’s Community Advocacy program. He was paired with a legal intern who was able to get three fourths of his medical bills forgiven. This was accomplished through the Center’s negotiations with the local hospital and being able to package funds from a hospital charity and a private foundation, together with an agreement with a collection agency for Mark to pay the remainder of the bills.