Today, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision, ruled that the Medicaid Act’s any-qualified-provider provision does not confer individual rights enforceable under 42 U.S.C. §1983. This decision reverses the Fourth Circuit’s judgment, which affirmed the right of Medicaid beneficiaries to sue state officials for excluding Planned Parenthood from South Carolina’s Medicaid program.
Background
Earlier this week, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) released its second report detailing changes in the credit reporting of medical debts made by the three national consumer reporting agencies (CRAs) to reduce the number of medical bills on credit reports. Overall, the CFPB found the changes in the reporting of medical collections have led to a significant reduction in the number of consumers with tradelines relating to medical debts on their consumer reports. However, the total balances of medical collections on consumer reports only fell by 38% nationwide.