NORFOLK, Virginia — A new report highlights the scale of medical debt enforcement in Virginia, where hospitals and providers filed more than 1 million lawsuits against patients over unpaid bills in recent years.
Researchers from Stanford and George Washington University found that between 2010 and 2024, roughly 1.15 million lawsuits were filed to recover over $1.4 billion in medical debt. More than 400,000 of those cases resulted in wage or bank account garnishments, underscoring the financial consequences for patients.
The findings suggest many patients struggle with unclear billing practices, including missing itemized statements, unexpected charges, and accounts sent to collections while disputes are ongoing. Advocates argue this creates what they describe as a “medical debt ecosystem,” where hospitals, courts, and collection systems interact in ways that can escalate financial strain.
Virginia Beach and Chesapeake ranked among the highest localities for debt-related court filings. Previous research also found institutions such as Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of Virginia among the most active in filing such lawsuits, though UVA says it stopped the practice in 2019 and expanded financial assistance programs.
Hospital officials have raised concerns about the accuracy of the new report, while advocates continue pushing for stronger enforcement of federal price transparency laws.
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