Volunteer Lawyers for Justice's Jeff Stephens Interviewed by PIX11
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Eric W. Hughes
Bershad Director of Communications
Volunteer Lawyers for Justice
(973) 233-5724
ehughes@vljnj.org
Jeff Stephens
In response to recent efforts by the State of New Jersey to provide medical debt relief and protections to its residents, Volunteer Lawyers for Justice’s Jeff Stephens, Senior Staff Attorney and Program Lead for VLJ’s Debt Relief Legal Program, was interviewed on August 21 by PIX11 about the impact this relief has, especially for those communities most impacted by medical debt and those least likely to seek medical care because of the cost.
Related News:
•On August, 20, New Jersey Governor Murphy announced the elimination of $100 Million in medical debt for almost 50,000 New Jerseyans.
•In late July, Governor Murphy signed the Louisa Carman Medical Debt Relief Act into law. This landmark legislation, named after a dedicated administration staffer who tragically passed away, provides critical protections for those burdened by medical debt:
•𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗖𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗱: Medical debt interest rates are now capped at 3%.
•𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗶𝘁 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Most medical debts cannot be reported to credit-rating agencies.
•𝗗𝗲𝗯𝘁 𝗖𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗣𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲: A 120-day grace period following the sending of the first medical bill before debt collection can begin.
•𝗙𝗹𝗲𝘅𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗣𝗮𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻𝘀: Payments can't exceed 3% of monthly income and must adjust to financial changes.
•𝗪𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗚𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: No garnishing wages for those earning less than 600% of the federal poverty level.
This law is welcome news for many of the clients VLJ serves. As Jeff Stephens put it:
“Many of our clients are facing collection actions as a result of extensive medical debt, and this new law provides much-needed relief, including credit reporting limitations, income-based wage garnishment restrictions, and enforcement protections. This law moves us in the right direction toward ensuring that a person's health related challenges are not exacerbated by creditor actions on a person's unavoidable medical debt.”
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About Volunteer Lawyers for Justice (VLJ)
VLJ is an award-winning, comprehensive nonprofit legal services program based in Newark, NJ, with a statewide reach. VLJ's mission is to ensure access to justice for people experiencing poverty. The Newark-based organization ensures fair access to the legal system through partnerships with corporations and hundreds of volunteer attorneys. In 2023, VLJ’s work impacted over 4,200 people—including 1,644 children—and its volunteer attorneys donated nearly $2 million in free legal services.