Episode 151: Jared Walker, Founder of Dollar For

Overview

Jared Walker founded Dollar For in 2012 in Portland, Oregon. Now a national non-profit crushing medical bills and making charity care known, easy, and fair, the organization was born out of a desire to help folks in medical crisis after Jared witnessed his own family's experience with — you guessed it — crushing medical debt. Dollar For eliminates said medical debt by empowering patients and advocating on their behalf, because, as they believe: a medical crisis should not lead to a financial crisis. The organization helps patients check if they are eligible for financial assistance at their hospital, prepares and submits applications, and eliminates those medical bills — for free, no strings attached. Jared is on a mission to pulverize as many medical bills as he can while educating patients and empowering patient advocates.

Key Links

Key links mentioned in this episode:

Dollar For

Instagram

TikTok

Twitter

Takeaway

Tune in as Jared shares:

* why he founded Dollar For in 2012, after his own family underwent crushing medical debt

* why he thinks it’s truly ridiculous that medical crises in America usually also bring financial crises along with them — and how this doesn’t serve patients at all

* how he learned about charity care programs (enforceable as a result of the adoption of the Affordable Care Act, or ACA)

* what charity care is — and why enforcing this program can save patients MILLIONS

* how medical debt can negatively impact our credit and force many into bankruptcy

* why he took to social media to spread the message about charity care

* why he thinks charity care flew under the radar for so long — and why it continues to do so

* why federal minimum income thresholds are different from state-to-state, and how this can affect access to charity care

* what the federal threshold limit is on the use of charity care (how much time patients have to utilize this bill payment option — 240 days!)

* what accountability looks like between state and federal agencies and hospitals — and how Dollar For often stands in as an intermediary

* that putting hospitals on blast on social media has often been a more effective tool to enforce charity care than letters from legal sources

* why social media patient activism makes Jared hopeful for the future

* his estimate that 30% of Americans would qualify for charity care based on income alone

* where Dollar For’s bill forgiveness tally was at in April of 2022: $16 million (as of this episode release, they’ve surpassed $28 million!)

* how he works to match his volunteers’ strengths with patient needs

* the demographics of the patients Dollar For works with: largely the elderly, and individuals who speak English as a second language

* how so many hospitals game the system to hide charity care from patients in need

* Jared’s take on medical PTSD — and how medical debt contributes to the experience

* how Jared sees the future of healthcare costs in America — and that the solution is to empower patients

* practical tips for asking hospitals to consider your bill for forgiveness under charity care: write a letter!

* Jared’s advice on NOT becoming complacent about large medical bills as they arrive

* why NOT to put your hospital bill on a credit card

* that if you’ve paid bills on a payment plan and later find out your bill was eligible for charity care — you are eligible for a FULL REFUND

* how Dollar For was first invited to the Wh