 What causes medical debt in America? Providers are raising costs and the insurance industry is passing them back on to everyday people. And that's hit us hard in Wayne County. We ranked number eight nationally for counties affected by medical debt. In response, County Executive Warren Evans made alleviating medical debt and expanding health care access a primary goal for our county. In March of 2024, we announced a program in partnership with Undue Medical Debt to relieve medical debt for qualifying residents, braiding funding that originated as ARPA with local funding to support indigent health care.