The Central Ohio Hospital Council, a collection of four Columbus, Ohio-based hospitals, is forgiving $335 million in medical debt for care received between 2015 and 2020.
Mount Carmel Health System, Nationwide Children's Hospital, OSU Wexner Medical Center and OhioHealth are participating in the program that will provide assistance to around 340,000 Columbus residents.
To be eligible for the program, patients must earn between 200% and 400% of the federal poverty line, or between $55,500 and $111,000 for a family of four, according to an Oct. 16 city of Columbus news release. The city estimates that the average amount forgiven will come to around $1,000.
The city will use $500,000 to cover the administrative costs of mailing letters to eligible patients.