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Straight-ahead summaries built from the official bill text. We keep the source links front and center and leave the decision up to you.

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HB0195 • 2025

Credit reporting-medical debt.

AN ACT relating to consumer protection; prohibiting the reporting of medical debt to credit reporting agencies; creating a civil penalty; providing definitions; making conforming amendments; specifying applicability; and providing for an effective date.

Healthcare
Inactive

Wyoming marks this bill as inactive, which usually means it is no longer moving in the current session.

Sponsor
Representative Provenza
Last action
2025-03-03
Official status
inactive
Effective date
3/1/2025

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide specific details about penalties or exceptions related to credit cards, only that contracts made before July 1, 2025 are still valid even if they allow reporting of medical debt.

Ban on Reporting Medical Debt to Credit Agencies

The bill prohibits medical facilities and debt collectors from reporting unpaid medical bills to credit agencies in Wyoming starting July 1, 2025.

What This Bill Does

  • Stops medical facilities and debt collectors from sending information about unpaid medical bills to credit reporting companies after July 1, 2025.
  • Updates existing laws to include definitions and rules about reporting medical debt.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Medical facilities like hospitals and clinics
  • Debt collectors who handle unpaid medical bills

Terms To Know

Collection entity
A person or company that purchases medical debt from or collects medical debt on behalf of another person.
Medical debt
Money a patient owes for health care services or products, excluding credit card charges unless the card is specifically for paying health care costs.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not apply to contracts made before July 1, 2025.
  • It only affects medical facilities and collection entities doing business in Wyoming.

Bill History

  1. 2025-03-03 House

    H:Died in Committee Returned Bill Pursuant to HR 5-4

  2. 2025-02-10 House

    H No report prior to CoW Cutoff

  3. 2025-02-10 House

    H10 - Labor:Do Pass Failed 3-5-1-0-0

  4. 2025-01-21 House

    H Introduced and Referred to H10 - Labor

  5. 2025-01-16 House

    H Received for Introduction

  6. 2025-01-15 LSO

    Bill Number Assigned

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
25LSO-0583
2025
STATE OF WYOMING
25LSO-0583
Introduced
2.0

HOUSE BILL NO. HB0195

Credit reporting-medical debt.

Sponsored by: Representative(s) Provenza and Andrew and Senator(s) Barlow and Hutchings

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to consumer protection; prohibiting the reporting of medical debt to credit reporting agencies; creating a civil penalty; providing definitions; making conforming amendments; specifying applicability; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1
.

W.S. 40
‑
12
‑
115 is created to read:

40
‑
12
‑
115.

Credit reports; medical debt reporting prohibited; definitions.

(a)

As used in this section:

(i)

"Collection entity" means any person that purchases medical debt from or collects medical debt on behalf of another person;

(ii)

"Credit report" means as defined in W.S. 40
‑
12
‑
501(a)(iv);

(iii)

"Credit reporting agency" means a person that collects and sells information about a person's credit history;

(iv)

"Health care product" means a product including, but not limited to, a good, device, durable medical equipment or prescription drug provided in the provision of health care services;

(v)

"Health care services" means as defined in W.S. 26
‑
13
‑
303(a)(ii);

(vi)

"Medical debt" means an obligation or alleged obligation of a consumer to pay any amount related to the receipt by the consumer of health care products or health care services. "Medical debt" shall not include debt charged to a credit card unless the credit card is issued under an open
‑
end or closed
‑
end credit plan offered specifically for the payment of charges related to health care products or health care services;

(vii)

"Medical facility" means a hospital, clinic, office, nursing home or other facility where a health care provider provides health care products or services to patients.

(b)

On and after July 1, 2025, each medical facility and each collection entity doing business in this state shall not report any portion of a medical debt to a credit reporting agency for use in a credit report.

(c)

If a medical facility or collection entity violates this section, a court of competent jurisdiction may impose a civil penalty on the medical facility or collection entity in the amount of the medical debt reported.

Section 2
.

W.S. 40
‑
12
‑
102(a)(x) is amended to read:

40
‑
12
‑
102.

Definitions.

(a)

As used in this act:

(x)

"This act" means W.S. 40
‑
12
‑
101 through
40
‑
12
‑
114
40
‑
12
‑
115
.

Section 3.

Nothing in this act is to be construed to impair any contract entered into before July 1, 2025.

Section 4.

This act is effective July 1, 2025
.

(END)

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HB0195