On October 27, a new Delaware substitute bill, Senate Substitute 1 for SB 156, took effect to prohibit the inclusion of medical debt in consumer credit reports. The law amends Delaware’s Medical Debt Protection Act to prohibit (i) consumer reporting agencies from including medical debt in consumer reports, and (ii) any person from reporting medical debt information to such agencies. The law removes provisions that had previously allowed consumer reporting agencies to include medical debt information in credit reports under certain conditions and for individuals to report medical debt to these agencies.

The law defines medical debt as debt owed by a consumer to a business primarily engaged in providing healthcare services, provided the debt arises from medical services, products or devices. Under the statutory definition, medical debt includes bills that are current or already paid, but excludes debt charged to a general-purpose credit card, unless the card is specifically issued for healthcare expenses.