Florida SB 1222: Theft

Bill Text

1222 
Medical Debt 
2026-01-06T09:27:33Z 
Defining the terms “medical debt collector” and “medical debt creditor”; prohibiting medical debt creditors and medical debt collectors from engaging in specified activities to collect medical debt; specifying limitations on the amount of interest a debtor may be charged for medical debt; providing that certain debtors may not be charged any interest or late fees on their medical debt, etc. 
Original Filed Version 
2026 
S 
2026-07-01T00:00:00Z 
GB 
General Bill 
__ 

 Florida Senate - 2026 SB 1222 

 By Senator Rodriguez 

 40-01249-26 20261222__ 
 1 A bill to be entitled 
 2 An act relating to medical debt; amending s. 395.3011, 
 3 F.S.; revising the definition of the term 
 4 “extraordinary collection action”; defining the terms 
 5 “medical debt collector” and “medical debt creditor”; 
 6 prohibiting medical debt creditors and medical debt 
 7 collectors from engaging in specified activities to 
 8 collect medical debt; deleting applicability; 
 9 specifying limitations on the amount of interest a 
 10 debtor may be charged for medical debt; providing that 
 11 certain debtors may not be charged any interest or 
 12 late fees on their medical debt; providing that such 
 13 interest rates apply to judgments on medical debt; 
 14 providing an effective date. 
 15 
 16 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 
 17 
 18 Section 1. Section 395.3011, Florida Statutes, is amended 
 19 to read: 
 20 395.3011 Billing and collection activities.— 
 21 (1) As used in this section, the term: 
 22 (a) “Extraordinary collection action” means any of the 
 23 following actions taken by a licensed facility against an 
 24 individual in relation to obtaining payment of a bill for care: 
 25 1.(a) Selling the individual’s debt to another party, 
 26 except if, before the sale, the medical creditor has entered 
 27 into a legally binding written agreement with the medical debt 
 28 collector which includes all of the following terms: 
 29 a. Prohibits the medical debt collector from engaging in 
 30 any prohibited collection action as specified in subsection (2); 
 31 b. Prohibits the medical debt collector from charging 
 32 interest on the debt in excess of that authorized under 
 33 subsection (4); 
 34 c. Allows the debt to be returned or recalled by the 
 35 medical debt creditor upon a determination by the medical debt 
 36 creditor or medical debt collector that the debtor is eligible 
 37 for financial assistance; and 
 38 d. If the debtor is determined to be eligible for financial 
 39 assistance and the debt is not returned to or recalled by the 
 40 medical debt creditor, requires the medical debt collector to 
 41 adhere to procedures specified in the agreement which ensure 
 42 that the debtor does not pay, and has no obligation to pay, the 
 43 medical debt collector and the medical debt creditor, in total, 
 44 more than he or she is personally responsible for paying in 
 45 compliance with the law. 
 46 2. Filing a debt collection lawsuit. 
 47 (b) “Medical debt collector” means a third party, separate 
 48 from the medical debt creditor, that is hired to recoup, or is 
 49 sold, unpaid medical bills. 
 50 (c) “Medical debt creditor” means the party that is owed 
 51 money for medical services. 
 52 (2) A medical debt creditor or medical debt collector may 
 53 not engage in any of the following activities to collect debts 
 54 owed for health care services: 
 55 (a) Causing or threatening an individual’s arrest. 
 56 (b) Causing or threatening an individual to be subject to a 
 57 writ of body attachment or similar instrument of law. 
 58 (c) Obtaining or threatening to obtain a lien on an 
 59 individual’s real property. 
 60 (d) Foreclosing or threatening to foreclose on an 
 61 individual’s real property. 
 62 (e) Garnishing or threatening to garnish wages or state 
 63 income tax refunds. 
 64 (f) Using state or federal tax offsets to seize tax refunds 
 65 or tax credits. 
 66 (g) Attaching, seizing, or threatening to attach or seize a 
 67 consumer’s bank account. 
 68 (h) Furnishing or threatening to furnish information about 
 69 the medical debt to a consumer reporting agency Reporting 
 70 adverse information about the individual to consumer credit 
 71 reporting agencies or credit bureaus. 
 72 (c) Deferring, denying, or requiring a payment before 
 73 providing medically necessary care because of the individual’s 
 74 nonpayment of one or more bills for previously provided care 
 75 covered under the facility’s financial assistance policy. 
 76 (d) Actions that require a legal or judicial process, 
 77 including, but not limited to: 
 78 1. Placing a lien on the individual’s property; 
 79 2. Foreclosing on the individual’s real property; 
 80 3. Attaching or seizing the individual’s bank account or 
 81 any other personal property; 
 82 4. Commencing a civil action against the individual; 
 83 5. Causing the individual’s arrest; or 
 8