Sen. Roger Marshall’s OB-GYN Practice Sued 700+ Patients Over Medical Debt; 81 Were Arrested After Missed Court Dates
Sen. Roger Marshall’s former medical practice sued more than 700 patients over medical debt, with court records showing arrests in 81 of those cases after patients missed court dates. The cases involved medical debts ranging from $101 to several thousand dollars and included an 18% annual interest rate on unpaid bills.
The New York Times reported on September 8 that Marshall sued more than 700 patients over outstanding medical bills during his decades-long career as an OB-GYN.
In another 13 cases, Marshall’s lawyers sought arrest warrants, but the records did not establish whether an arrest occurred.
About half of the lawsuits were filed under Marshall’s name, while the others were filed under Heartland Regional OBGYN. Many of the patients lived in Barton County, a rural area with above-average poverty and uninsured rates. The arrests in the cases occurred after patients missed court appearances in debt-collection lawsuits.
Marshall sued Joe Vasquez and his wife over a $4,561 unpaid bill related to his wife’s emergency hysterectomy. Meischa Zimmerman was arrested three times over six years in connection with a medical debt from a cesarean delivery.
Across the 81 cases in which arrests were recorded, the debts ranged from $114 to $4,683, according to court records.
Marshall practiced obstetrics for more than 25 years before entering politics in 2016 and stopped practicing medicine after winning a seat in Congress that year. Marshall’s spokeswoman said he spent decades treating patients regardless of their ability to pay and highlighted his practice’s treatment of Medicaid patients.
Read the full story at @MBT:
What do you think about medical providers using lawsuits and arrest warrants to collect unpaid medical bills?
MBH/AB