ELECTIONS, POLITICS, & GOVERNMENT

Bill seeks to clear Utahns of their spouses’ medical debts after they die

Feb 4, 2025, 2:00 PM

stephanie pitcher, spouse medical debt bill sponsor...

Sen. Stephanie Pitcher, D-Salt Lake City, talks to members of the media during the first day of the 2025 legislative session at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. Pitcher is sponsoring a bill that would absolve Utahns of their spouses' medical debt after their spouse dies. (Kristin Murphy/Deseret News)

(Kristin Murphy/Deseret News)

SALT LAKE CITY — A Utah lawmaker is sponsoring a bill that would absolve Utahns of their spouses’ medical debt after their spouse passes away.

“It just seems fundamentally wrong that… medical bills would be passed to a surviving spouse,” said state Sen. Stephanie Pitcher, D-Salt Lake City. “Medical debt ends up being the number one driver that can completely devastate a family financially.”

Pitcher’s bill would remove medical expenses as a family expense under Utah statute. Family expenses are things both spouses are liable for.

Pitcher told KSL NewsRadio she ran a very similar bill three years ago. She said it got to the Senate, but didn’t clear the Legislature before the end of that legislative session.

“But, there was ultimately, I think, a recognition that what’s happening isn’t fair,” Pitcher said. “It is completely burdensome to families and there’s got to be a better way.”

The bill is still awaiting its first hearing in a Senate committee. If it passes there, it would proceed to the full Senate and then move over to the House.

Even after all that, the bill would still need to be signed into law by the governor. If he does, as the bill is currently written, the law would go into effect in May of this year.

Related: Utah proposal to bring new protections for ‘Kidfluencers’

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Bill seeks to clear Utahns of their spouses’ medical debts after they die