B 26-0438 Legislature · 26th Council Period (2025-2026)

Medical Debt Mitigation Amendment Act of 2025

The Medical Debt Mitigation Amendment Act of 2025 targets medical debt affecting nearly 90,000 District residents (20% of all residents) by requiring healthcare facilities to strengthen financial assistance policies with uniform income eligibility and clear cost estimates before treatment. It prohibits reporting medical debt to credit bureaus, bans wage garnishments and home liens for such debt, and mandates payment plans for low-income patients. The bill also restricts medical lending promotions and caps out-of-pocket costs relative to insurance rates. Enforcement will be handled by DC Health and the Office of the Attorney General to ensure compliance with these debt mitigation measures.

Bill status signed all 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Oct 2025

Committee Review

Apr 2026

Council Passage

Jun 2026

Signed into Law

Aug 2026

Introduced Oct 20, 2025 Signed Aug 28, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Engrossment → Enrollment · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was finalized and enacted into law with several substantive edits. The most significant change is the expansion of the definition of 'medically necessary health service' to explicitly include treating symptoms of an illness, and the addition of a specific exclusion for elective cosmetic surgery. Additionally, the bill's title was updated to reflect new provisions regarding unfair trade practices, and some section numbering was adjusted during the legislative process.

Scope change

The bill's scope was expanded to explicitly cover the treatment of symptoms under 'medically necessary health services' and to exclude elective cosmetic surgery from this definition. The title was also updated to include new provisions about unfair trade practices.

DEFINITION

The definition of 'medically necessary health service' was expanded to include services necessary to treat the symptoms of an illness or injury, and a new exclusion was added for elective cosmetic surgery.

SCOPE

The bill's title was updated to explicitly mention amendments to Chapter 39 of Title 28 regarding unfair or deceptive trade practices.

TECHNICAL

Section numbering was adjusted from 'Sec. 23' to 'Sec. 201' and 'Sec. 24' to 'Sec. 202' in the definitions section to align with the final enrolled text.

Floor votes · Council Jun 2, 2026

How they voted

13–0

Passed

Total votes 13

Jun 2, 2026

D Democratic11

11 Yea

100% Yea

I Independent2

2 Yea

100% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Jun 2, 2026

Council · Passed

Council Vote: pass (13-0)

council

Apr 7, 2026

Legislature · Passed

Committee Mark-up of B26-0438 by the Health Committee

legislature

Oct 21, 2025

Committee

Referred to Committee on Health

legislature

Oct 20, 2025

Introduced

B26-0438 Introduced by Councilmember Henderson at Office of the Secretary

legislature

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors