# Illinois erases $1.4 billion in medical debt

> Illinois wipes $1.4bn medical debt for 694k residents.
- Title: Illinois erases $1.4 billion in medical debt | Shortify
- Summary: Illinois wipes $1.4bn medical debt for 694k residents. Illinois erased $1.4 billion in medical debt for 694,000 residents through its Medical Debt Relief…
- Keywords: illinois, medical debt, medical debt relief, gov jb pritzker, cook county, toni preckwinkle, undue medical debt, federal poverty level, news, local, erases, billion
- Source: Chicago Sun-Times — https://chicago.suntimes.com/health/2026/10/15/illinois-medical-debt-relief-program-pritzker
- Published: 2026-10-15T20:36:10.151+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: illinois, medical debt, medical debt relief, gov jb pritzker, cook county, toni preckwinkle, undue medical debt, federal poverty level, news, local
## Illinois Medical Debt Relief Program
Illinois erases $1.4 billion in medical debt for thousands of residents.
## Program Impact
The state’s program wiped out an average of $1,200 in debt for 694,000 residents.
## State Funding
Illinois allocated $10 million for the program and committed to continued funding.
## Return on Investment
Pritzker said every dollar invested relieves one dollar of debt.
## Program Goal
The program addresses unaffordable medical debt from unexpected injuries or illnesses.
## County Collaboration
Cook County and Illinois programs combined erased $2.4 billion for 1.5 million residents.
## Funding Source
Cook County used federal funds from the American Rescue Plan Act to start the program.
## Next Steps
Preckwinkle plans to use data to find root causes of medical debt.
## Eligibility
Residents must have income at or below 400% of federal poverty level.
## How It Works
Residents receive letters notifying them of debt erased without applying.
## Impact in Counties
7% of DuPage County residents, 13% of Kane County, 9% of Lake County had debt erased.
## Extreme Cases
One resident had $900,000 in medical debt erased by the program.
## Key takeaway

Illinois erased $1.4 billion in medical debt for 694,000 residents through its Medical Debt Relief Program.