State takes Minnesotans tax refunds for debts owed to hospitals
Hospitals say state s help to collect medical debts is lifeline; some already struggling Minnesotans say it s added hardship. December 11, 2020 4:27pm
The discovery of seven tumors on her liver forced Jean Hehn to make some tough financial choices: Pay her medical bill or pay rent. Pay her medical bill or buy groceries. Pay her medical bill or put gas in her car.
But the state of Minnesota took that choice away from Hehn when it started seizing her state income tax refund to pay an overdue bill with Regions Hospital.
The first time it happened, Hehn said she was shocked and then angry that the state had the power to act as a debt collector for private health care companies. When she told close friends about her experience, some confessed privately that it had happened to them as well.