Medical Debt Calculator

A 2022 KFF Health News and NPR investigation, based on a KFF poll, estimated that more than 100 million people in America carry health care debt, and the bill a hospital first sends is rarely the final word. The tool here lets you model what a negotiated balance might look like and how it could be paid off over time, so you can weigh real options against the sticker price you were handed.

The estimate starts from the discount you expect to negotiate, entered as a percentage of the original balance (the default is 40%; use the figure the provider actually offers). It then divides the reduced balance evenly over the number of months you choose, with no interest, as in an interest-free payment plan arranged with the provider. If you enter your annual income, it also shows the monthly payment as a share of your monthly income. The result is a side-by-side view of what an affordable schedule could look like once a settlement is reached.

Negotiation tends to go further when you deal straight with the provider or its billing office rather than a third-party collector, who often has narrower authority. Offering a lump sum where you can usually unlocks the steepest reductions. Whatever plan you settle on, it should fit your actual budget, since payments you miss can drag down your credit score and undo the savings you fought for.