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00000178-73c0-ddab-a97a-7bf830af0000From debate over childhood vaccinations to the changing business of hospital finance, IPR has the stories of hospitals and public health that affect northern Michigan.

Gift from MI nurses will erase $8.9 million in medical debt

Over 9,000 people struggling with medical debt in northern Michigan will get an early holiday gift this year.The Michigan Nurses Association announced Thursday they're donating $8.9 million to the cause.

“We know that we have patients who say over and over that they are worried about paying the hospital bills when they should be worried about getting better and going home,” says Melissa Boals, a nurse at Munson Medical Center and member of the nurses association board.

Boals says medical debt is the number one reason people file for bankruptcy in the U.S. – a claim backed by a number of studies.

She says this gift is a start, but she wishes they could do more.

“I can’t imagine how these people are going to feel,” says Boals.

The nurses association made a similar gesture at Sparrow Hospital last year.

Morgan Springer is a contributing editor and producer at Interlochen Public Radio. She previously worked for the New England News Collaborative as the host/producer of NEXT, the weekly show which aired on six public radio station in the region.