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Debt help journal for people who want to learn more about debt consolidation, debt settlement, debt management, debt education, credit card debt, credit repair, and how to become debt free.
Monday, May 23, 2005
Two-Income Trap Equals Bankruptcy Says Harvard Law Professor
Nearly half of all Americans who file for bankruptcy do so because of medical expenses, according to a new study released jointly by researchers at Harvard Law School and Harvard Medical School this week. The study, which is based on surveys of 1,771 individuals filing for bankruptcy, is the first of its kind to gather extensive information on the correlation between medical conditions and expenses and bankruptcy.
"Both doctors and lawyers care about how health care is financed, but it was only when we put our heads together that we could probe further," explained Elizabeth Warren, professor of law and author of "The Two-Income Trap." "We discovered that in 2004 about two million men, women and children were swept through the bankruptcy system in the fallout of a medical problem. Good educations, decent jobs, and health insurance were no guarantee that a person wouldn't be wiped out by an illness or accident. We believe the current policy debates are overlooking a critical problem: A broken health care finance system is bankrupting middle class America."
"Our study is fairly shocking," explained Steffie Woolhandler, associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, in an interview with the Chicago Tribune. "We found that, too often, private health insurance is an umbrella that melts in the rain."
http://debtcompany.org/debt-blog/
Nearly half of all Americans who file for bankruptcy do so because of medical expenses, according to a new study released jointly by researchers at Harvard Law School and Harvard Medical School this week. The study, which is based on surveys of 1,771 individuals filing for bankruptcy, is the first of its kind to gather extensive information on the correlation between medical conditions and expenses and bankruptcy.
"Both doctors and lawyers care about how health care is financed, but it was only when we put our heads together that we could probe further," explained Elizabeth Warren, professor of law and author of "The Two-Income Trap." "We discovered that in 2004 about two million men, women and children were swept through the bankruptcy system in the fallout of a medical problem. Good educations, decent jobs, and health insurance were no guarantee that a person wouldn't be wiped out by an illness or accident. We believe the current policy debates are overlooking a critical problem: A broken health care finance system is bankrupting middle class America."
"Our study is fairly shocking," explained Steffie Woolhandler, associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, in an interview with the Chicago Tribune. "We found that, too often, private health insurance is an umbrella that melts in the rain."
http://debtcompany.org/debt-blog/
Saturday, May 21, 2005
There's a new blog on the horizon worth watching. They have Women's Debt Help in the featured list of discussion topics and we like it anytime we see that type of help being posted.
So are you contemplating filing bankruptcy? If you are and don't want to get caught up in the new laws that ARE coming, you'd better contact a bankruptcy attorney today. We hear it's rough going to get an appointment with a bankruptcy lawyer these days because so many people are filing for bankruptcy. Don't wait ... that's our advice for those who have absolutely no way out of their debt situation.
So are you contemplating filing bankruptcy? If you are and don't want to get caught up in the new laws that ARE coming, you'd better contact a bankruptcy attorney today. We hear it's rough going to get an appointment with a bankruptcy lawyer these days because so many people are filing for bankruptcy. Don't wait ... that's our advice for those who have absolutely no way out of their debt situation.
Thursday, May 05, 2005
National Endowment for Financial Education
This "action area" of the National Endowment for Financial Education® (NEFE®) was created to provide Americans with practical money-management skills and an introduction to financial planning through course work that covers the fundamentals of money management.
Although not restricted to a particular age group, the Education Programs area has focused largely on increasing financial literacy among the nation's youth. This focus is exemplified by the organization's longest-standing public service effort, the NEFE High School Financial Planning Program® (HSFPP).
This is one of the best resources for debt education and I highly recommend you take some time on this website to educate yourself. http://www.nefe.org/
This "action area" of the National Endowment for Financial Education® (NEFE®) was created to provide Americans with practical money-management skills and an introduction to financial planning through course work that covers the fundamentals of money management.
Although not restricted to a particular age group, the Education Programs area has focused largely on increasing financial literacy among the nation's youth. This focus is exemplified by the organization's longest-standing public service effort, the NEFE High School Financial Planning Program® (HSFPP).
This is one of the best resources for debt education and I highly recommend you take some time on this website to educate yourself. http://www.nefe.org/
Sunday, May 01, 2005
Fair Credit Reporting Act
The Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is designed to promote accuracy, fairness, and privacy of information in the files of every consumer reporting agency (CRA).
Most CRAs are credit bureaus that gather and sell information about you (such as if you pay your bills on time or have filed bankruptcy) to creditors, employers, landlords, and other businesses. The FCRA gives you specific rights, as outlined below. You may have additional rights under state law. You may contact a state or local consumer protection agency or a state attorney general to learn those rights.
You must be told if information in your file has been used against you. Anyone who uses information from a CRA to take action against you, such as denying an application for credit, insurance, or employment, must tell you and give you the name, address, and phone number of the CRA that provided the consumer report.
ALso, you can find out for yourself what is in your credit report. The law says that a CRA must be given you if you request it, and also a list of everyone who has requested it recently.
There is no charge for the report if a person has taken action against you because of information supplied by the CRA, but you request the report within 60 days of receiving notice of the action.
You also are entitled to one free report every twelve months upon request if you certify that:
You are unemployed and plan to seek employment within 60 days
You are on welfare
Your report is inaccurate due to fraud.
Otherwise, a CRA may charge you up to eight dollars.
The law gives you the right to dispute inaccurate information with the consumer reporting agency. If you tell a CRA that your file contains inaccurate information, the CRA must investigate the items (usually within 30 days) by presenting to its information source all relevant evidence you submitted; unless your dispute proves to be frivolous.
The source of your compalint must review your evidence and report its findings to the CRA. (The source also must advise national CRAs, to which it has provided the data, of any error.) The CRA must give you a written report of the investigation and a copy of your report if the investigation results in any change. If the CRA's investigation does not resolve the dispute, you may add a brief statement to your file. The CRA must normally include a summary of your statement in future reports. If an item is deleted or a dispute statement is filed, you may ask that anyone who has recently received your report be notified of the change.
Inaccurate information must be corrected or deleted. A CRA must remove or correct inaccurate or unverified information from its files, usually within 30 days after you dispute it. However, the CRA is not required to remove accurate data from your file unless it is outdated or cannot be verified. If your dispute results in any change to your report, the CRA cannot reinsert into your file a disputed item unless the information source verifies its accuracy and completeness. In addition, the CRA must give you a written notice telling you it has reinserted the item. The notice must include the name, address and phone number of the information source of the filing.
You can dispute inaccurate items with the source of the information. If you tell anyone, such as a creditor who reports to a CRA, that you disputed an item, they may not then report the information to a CRA without including a notice of your dispute.
Outdated information may not be reported. In most cases, a CRA may not report negative information that is more than seven years old, and ten years for bankruptcies.
Access to your file is limited. A CRA may provide information about you only to people with a need recognized by the FCRA, usually to consider an application with a creditor, insurer, employer, landlord or other business.
Your consent is required for reports that are provided to employers, or reports that contain medical information. A CRA may not give out information about you to your employer or prospective employer without your written consent. A CRA may not report medical information about you to creditors, insurers or employers without your permission.
You may choose to exclude your name from CRA lists for unsolicited credit and insurance offers. Creditors and insurers may use file information as the basis for sending you unsolicited offers of credit or insurance. Such offers must include a toll-free number for you to call if you want your name and address removed from future lists. If you call, you must be kept off the lists for two years.
You may seek damages from violators. If a CRA, a user or in some cases a provider of CRA data, violates the FCRA, you may sue them in state or federal court.
For more information contact the Federal Trade Commission.
The above information should be understood to be a general discussion of the subject matter and does not constitute a legal opinion about the situation. For further information please consult a qualified attorney.
http://debt-education.org/fcra.html
The Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is designed to promote accuracy, fairness, and privacy of information in the files of every consumer reporting agency (CRA).
Most CRAs are credit bureaus that gather and sell information about you (such as if you pay your bills on time or have filed bankruptcy) to creditors, employers, landlords, and other businesses. The FCRA gives you specific rights, as outlined below. You may have additional rights under state law. You may contact a state or local consumer protection agency or a state attorney general to learn those rights.
You must be told if information in your file has been used against you. Anyone who uses information from a CRA to take action against you, such as denying an application for credit, insurance, or employment, must tell you and give you the name, address, and phone number of the CRA that provided the consumer report.
ALso, you can find out for yourself what is in your credit report. The law says that a CRA must be given you if you request it, and also a list of everyone who has requested it recently.
There is no charge for the report if a person has taken action against you because of information supplied by the CRA, but you request the report within 60 days of receiving notice of the action.
You also are entitled to one free report every twelve months upon request if you certify that:
You are unemployed and plan to seek employment within 60 days
You are on welfare
Your report is inaccurate due to fraud.
Otherwise, a CRA may charge you up to eight dollars.
The law gives you the right to dispute inaccurate information with the consumer reporting agency. If you tell a CRA that your file contains inaccurate information, the CRA must investigate the items (usually within 30 days) by presenting to its information source all relevant evidence you submitted; unless your dispute proves to be frivolous.
The source of your compalint must review your evidence and report its findings to the CRA. (The source also must advise national CRAs, to which it has provided the data, of any error.) The CRA must give you a written report of the investigation and a copy of your report if the investigation results in any change. If the CRA's investigation does not resolve the dispute, you may add a brief statement to your file. The CRA must normally include a summary of your statement in future reports. If an item is deleted or a dispute statement is filed, you may ask that anyone who has recently received your report be notified of the change.
Inaccurate information must be corrected or deleted. A CRA must remove or correct inaccurate or unverified information from its files, usually within 30 days after you dispute it. However, the CRA is not required to remove accurate data from your file unless it is outdated or cannot be verified. If your dispute results in any change to your report, the CRA cannot reinsert into your file a disputed item unless the information source verifies its accuracy and completeness. In addition, the CRA must give you a written notice telling you it has reinserted the item. The notice must include the name, address and phone number of the information source of the filing.
You can dispute inaccurate items with the source of the information. If you tell anyone, such as a creditor who reports to a CRA, that you disputed an item, they may not then report the information to a CRA without including a notice of your dispute.
Outdated information may not be reported. In most cases, a CRA may not report negative information that is more than seven years old, and ten years for bankruptcies.
Access to your file is limited. A CRA may provide information about you only to people with a need recognized by the FCRA, usually to consider an application with a creditor, insurer, employer, landlord or other business.
Your consent is required for reports that are provided to employers, or reports that contain medical information. A CRA may not give out information about you to your employer or prospective employer without your written consent. A CRA may not report medical information about you to creditors, insurers or employers without your permission.
You may choose to exclude your name from CRA lists for unsolicited credit and insurance offers. Creditors and insurers may use file information as the basis for sending you unsolicited offers of credit or insurance. Such offers must include a toll-free number for you to call if you want your name and address removed from future lists. If you call, you must be kept off the lists for two years.
You may seek damages from violators. If a CRA, a user or in some cases a provider of CRA data, violates the FCRA, you may sue them in state or federal court.
For more information contact the Federal Trade Commission.
The above information should be understood to be a general discussion of the subject matter and does not constitute a legal opinion about the situation. For further information please consult a qualified attorney.
http://debt-education.org/fcra.html
