North Carolina
Feds approve Cooper plan to relieve up to $4B in NC medical debt, as Harris weighs in
A plan unveiled at the beginning of this month by Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper to leverage Medicaid funds to help North Carolinians struggling with medical debt has been approved by the federal government.
On Friday, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) approved a plan that has the potential to relieve $4 billion in existing hospital medical debt for people in the state, according to a news release. In order for the plan to take effect, hospitals would need to sign on.
“Unlike most other debts, medical debt is not intentional because people don’t choose to get seriously ill or have an accident,” Cooper said, according to the news release.
“Medical debts are often beyond people’s ability to pay, ruining their credit, keeping them from getting credit cards, loans and jobs and sometimes driving them into bankruptcy. That’s why we’re working with hospitals and federal partners to help relieve the burden of medical debt for North Carolina families,” he said.
Vice President Kamala Harris — who appears set to become the Democratic presidential nominee for the November election, and has been considering Cooper as a possible running mate — has been “coordinating” with state officials on the medical debt plan, The Washington Post reported.
“No one should be denied access to economic opportunity simply because they experienced a medical emergency,” Harris said in a statement sent as part of a news release Monday.
“Yet today, more than 100 million Americans struggle with medical debt — making it more difficult for them to be approved for a car loan, a home loan, or a small-business loan, which makes it more difficult for them to just get by, much less get ahead.”
“I applaud North Carolina for setting an example that other states can follow by advancing a plan that has the potential to relieve $4 billion in medical debt for two million individuals and families. This critical step also strengthens financial assistance for emergency medical procedures moving forward,” Harris said.
Harris wrote that over $650 million in medical debt had been forgiven through the American Rescue Plan, which was passed under the Biden administration.
The News & Observer has contacted several hospitals and the North Carolina Healthcare Association, which represents hospitals, regarding their stances on the plan.
UNC Health “continues to have discussions with state and federal officials,” UNC Health spokesperson Alan Wolf said in an email.
“We support efforts to reduce medical debt and we expect to receive more details on the approved plan soon,” he said.
Medical debt relief provided
According to Cooper’s news release, hospitals that opt in to the plan must implement the following to be eligible for enhanced payments offered under the plan:
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For those on Medicaid, relieve all unpaid medical debt dating back to Jan. 1, 2014.
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Relieve all unpaid medical debt that has become virtually impossible to collect dating back to Jan. 1, 2014, for people not enrolled in Medicaid whose income is at or below at least 350% of the federal poverty level (FPL) or whose total debt exceeds 5% of their annual income. A family of two at 350% of the FPL makes about $71,000 a year.
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Provide discounts on medical bills for people at or below 300% FPL.
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Automatically enroll people into financial assistance, known as charity care.
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Not sell medical debt of people making below 300% FPL to debt collectors.
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Not report debt covered by policies laid out in the plan to a credit reporting agency.
Patients of participating hospitals will not need to take any actions to benefit from medical debt relief, according to the news release.
Plan to leverage Medicaid funds
When the state expanded Medicaid in December, it implemented a mechanism that allowed hospitals to receive higher federal reimbursements in return for paying the state’s share of costs under the expansion bill.
The federal government covers 90% of Medicaid coverage costs for the expansion population, while the state covers 10%. This funding mechanism was called the Healthcare Access and Stabilization Program.
The medical debt relief plan further leverages federal funds by providing higher HASP payments to hospitals that choose to implement the plan.
Hospitals often only collect a small fraction of the medical debt they are owed, Cooper said during a press conference announcing the plan on July 1.
However, large debts that remain on the books can prevent people from buying a home or getting a credit card and sometimes can lead people into homelessness and bankruptcy, he said.
North Carolina has one of the highest percentages — 13.4% — of adults with medical debt, according to KFF, a health policy organization. About 20 million people — or nearly 1 in 12 adults — owe a combined total of at least $220 billion in medical debt in the United States, KFF says.
North Carolina
Police: North Carolina man charged after high-speed chase in Erie County, arrested in the Town of Perry
PERRY, N.Y. — A North Carolina man is in custody after a chase that started in Erie County and ended with an arrest in Perry.
Wyoming County Sheriff’s deputies say Ericson Vasquez-Moran, 22, rammed a Border Patrol vehicle in Erie County around 11:30 p.m. Tuesday before taking off. The suspect was spotted in Warsaw on Route 20A, but a chase was called off due to high speeds.
Then around 2:30 a.m. Wednesday, deputies say Vasquez-Moran called 911 from Perry to surrender.
He’s charged with speeding, failure to keep right, unlawful fleeing a police officer, reckless driving, and reckless endangerment in the second degree.
Vasquez-Moran was given an appearance ticket for the Village of Warsaw Court and was released to the custody of the United States Border Patrol.
ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — After nearly two hours of public comment, the Asheville City Council unanimously denied a proposed affordable housing complex off Caribou Road—despite the city’s ongoing housing crisis.
The proposal, submitted by developer Pennrose, would have brought 100 affordable housing units to a nearly 10-acre site in the Shiloh neighborhood.
“I’m going to vote against affordable housing tonight, and that’s not a norm for me,” said Asheville City Councilmember Sage Turner.
AFFORDABLE HOUSING PROJECTS MOVE FORWARD ACROSS WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA
News 13 asked Vice Mayor Antanette Mosely why the city would deny this project amid a housing crisis in Asheville.
She said, in a statement, “I absolutely believe Asheville needs more affordable housing, and I have consistently supported housing projects across the city. But not every site is appropriate for every project.”
Residents who opposed the project said they were not against affordable housing itself, but believed the development was too large for the area.
MAY 13, 2026 – The Asheville City Council unanimously denied a proposed affordable housing complex off Caribou Road—despite the city’s ongoing housing crisis. (Photo credit: WLOS Staff)
“The access is too narrow, there was only one access point, the streets are too narrow, we’ve got a big problem with traffic here,” said Shiloh resident Scott Raines.
“Perhaps the only thing that I consider as a dead stop for affordable housing is if people are going to be injured or possibly die from the traffic that’s created,” Michael Boses, another resident, said.
ASHEVILLE PROPOSES PROPERTY TAX RATE INCREASE TO CLOSE $8.9M BUDGET GAP
The Shiloh neighborhood, established in 1870, is one of Asheville’s last historically Black communities. Several council members said preserving the area’s legacy factored into their decision.
“My vote for no is because I feel hyper protective of our legacy neighborhoods, I feel hyper protective of Shiloh,” Turner said.
Pennrose responded to the denial in a statement, saying: “While we are disappointed in the Council’s decision concerning the rezoning application at Caribou Road, we respect the community’s interest in preserving the character of legacy neighborhoods.”
Mullin visits Chimney Rock, talks immigration, recovery
Markwayne Mullin visits Chimney Rock, discusses recovery and says he does not believe sanctuary cities are legal.
ASHEVILLE – The city will consider shifting $19.2 million of its Tropical Storm Helene recovery funding to repair single-family housing after its initial plan would only repair about eight homes.
Across Western North Carolina, contracts for the repair, reconstruction or rehabilitation of single-family homes damaged by Helene have come in at an average cost of $276,285, according to slides presented to the Governor’s Advisory Committee on Western North Carolina Recovery on April 20. The repair program, managed through RenewNC, is funded by a $1.4 billion Community Development Block Grant delivered to North Carolina from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
In 2024, the North Carolina Office of Budget and Management estimated that over 70,000 homes were damaged by the storm, which caused an estimated $60 billion in damages and killed over 100 in the state.
After the city received its own $225 million grant from HUD, City Council unanimously voted to only allocated $31 million to housing for both multi-family projects and single-family home repairs. Of that $31 million pot, it only allocated $3 million to the single-family home repair program. During a May 5 Housing and Community Development Committee meeting, the city projected costs for just single-family home repairs at $30 million to $40 million.
In late 2025 and early 2026, city staff had suggested moving millions into the single-family home program to meet rising demand, the Citizen Times reported. During an April 1 Helene Housing Recovery Meeting, Director of Renew NC’s Single-Family Housing Program Maggie Battaglin estimated the $3 million in funding would only cover around eight homes.
Under the city’s agreement with the state, Asheville is not able to access the additional $807 million allocated to the single-family home repair program, meaning remaining applicants in Asheville would not be served. The agreement was first reported by Blue Ridge Public Radio.
Staff are now suggesting reallocating $19.2 million from other areas of its CDBG plan to fund the single-family repair program. The reallocation, which would require an amendment to the city’s plan, would pull $9.2 million from its multi-family housing program and $10 million from its CDBG-DR Infrastructure Program, where the city would pull from the funds from a project at the North Fork Water Treatment Plant. The reallocation would set aside $22.2 million for the program and will serve 55-65 households, according to state estimates presented by city of Asheville staff.
As of May 5, 285 applications for the program were filed in Asheville with 132 being considered “active” and eight being “under review.” Of the city’s applicants, 124 households have been deemed eligible for the RenewNC program.
The reallocation would set aside $22.2 million for the program and serve roughly 55-65 households, the city’s CDBG-DR Program Manager Elma King said during City Council’s May 7 Agenda Briefing. It’s still not enough to serve everyone, though, King said.
“Additional CDBG-DR programs, outside of infrastructure, may need to be re-evaluated to support single-family home repair,” King said.
As Western North Carolina continues to recover from Helene, lawmakers and regional leaders have pushed for more funding from the federal government. Despite high damages, Congress and FEMA have only distributed roughly $7 billion to the state, according to estimates from the Governor’s Office for Western North Carolina Recovery. Gov. Josh Stein has requested an additional $13.5 billion in federal aid, which would go through HUD’s CDBG-DR program.
Estimated damages in Asheville from Helene are far above the $225 million provided by the federal government, City Council member Kim Roney noted during the May 7 meeting.
“I keep coming back to the point that we don’t have enough funding, because $225 million sounds like a lot but it’s not $1.1 billion,” Roney said.
City Council will vote on the $19.2 million reallocation on June 23.
Will Hofmann is the Growth and Development Reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Got a tip? Email him at WHofmann@citizentimes.com or message will_hofmann.01 on Signal.
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