Huge Medical Bills and huge student loans

[Marianelaine]

Greetings , My daughter, who is a teacher, has $80,000 in student loans, which she has paid regularly on. Recently she had an elective surgery, which she paid for ahead of time ( with mom and dad's help) The surgery had problems, she developed peritonitis, had to have another surgery, which caused another problem, and she ended up having a third surgery to correct that. She has been in the hospital now for 16 days, 8 of those in ICU. I expect her bill to be 200-300 thousand dollars. She has health insurance, but it refuses to pay for the majority of the services. She is just above the cut off income for a Chapter 7, so I am wondering if she should do a chapter 13. Any other suggestions? There is no way she can pay this huge bill. And the doctor also said none of the problems were her fault- which makes me believe that she paid for the first surgery and she should not have to pay for any of the succeeding surgeries, because basically it was the surgeon's fault that she had to have the second and third surgeries.

[LadyInTheRed]

Your daughter's first concern should be getting well. I know the financial costs of medical care can be overhwelming. But, you can't change that and now is not the time to focus on that.

If she has a medical malpractice claim, she should talk to an attorney. You might even want to consult with a couple of reputable attorneys now on her behalf if you think there has been malpractice.

If she needs to file BK, her income is only the frst part of the chapter 7 means test. Many people with over median incomes get Chapter 7 discharges. If her disposible income is too high to qualify for a Chap 7, than she most likely will be able to fund a Chap 13 plan. When she is out of the hosptial, has recovered and incurred the medical bills she is going to incur, she should consult with a BK attorney if she is left with more debt than she can handle.

[Marianelaine]

Thank you, Lady!