May 21, 2026
Mr. Kennedy introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
To amend the Fair Credit Reporting Act to prohibit the inclusion of medical debt on a consumer report, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
Section 1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the Protecting Americans from Treatment-related Credit Harm Act
or the PATCH Act
.
Sec. 2. Amendments to Fair Credit Reporting Act
(a) Medical debt defined
Section 603 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681a) is amended by adding at the end the following:
(bb) Medical debt
The term medical debt means a debt arising from the receipt of medical services, products, or devices.
(b) Exclusion for medical debt
(1) In general
Section 605(a) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681c(a)) is amended by striking paragraph (6) and inserting the following:
(6)
(A)
Any adverse information related to a medical debt, including a medical debt that was placed for collection, charged to profit or loss, or subjected to any similar action.
(B)
Nothing in subparagraph (A) may be construed to prevent a consumer reporting agency from collecting the information described in that subparagraph.
(2) Technical and conforming amendments
Section 604(g) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681b(g)) is amended—
(A)
in paragraph (1)—
(i)
in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking (other than medical contact information treated in the manner required under section 605(a)(6))
;
(ii)
in subparagraph (A), by adding or
at the end;
(iii)
in subparagraph (B)(ii), by striking ; or
and inserting a period; and
(iv)
by striking subparagraph (C); and
(B)
in paragraph (2), by striking (other than medical information treated in the manner required under section 605(a)(6))
.
Sec. 3. Modification of regulations relating to prohibitions on use of medical debt information
(a) Definitions
In this section, the terms credit and creditor have the meanings given those terms in section 702 of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (15 U.S.C. 1691a).
(b) Requirement
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection shall amend section 1022.30 of title 12, Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor regulation, to ensure that creditors are prohibited from obtaining or using information relating to the medical debt of a consumer in determining whether or not to extend credit to that consumer.