Summary
After seven years of waiting, new regulations on bankruptcy protection are set to pass through Congress. This new legislation, which is designed to make it harder for people to declare Chapter 7 bankruptcy, has come under criticism because it does not actually address the causes of bankruptcy. However, it was easily passed in the Senate and it looks as though it will have a similarly quick passage through the House.
Original source:
http://www.idahostatesman.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050320/NEWS0203/503200311/1029/NEWS02
Details
Michelle Boyles was $12,000 in debt to credit card companies, but chose not to file for bankruptcy.
She and her fiance were recently able to purchase this house in Southwest Boise because she chose to pay off her debt instead.
Child support, alimony protections Back alimony or child support payments must be paid first.
Required credit counseling A debtor must undergo credit counseling within 180 days of filing bankruptcy.
? A sliding scale charity policy that forgives between 5 percent and 100 percent of the bill, depending on the patient's income.
"It behooves hospitals to have these kind of arrangements, because we're seeing more patients in need," says Mike Frith, director of business services at Saint Alphonsus.
If needy patients can't pay, hospitals are forced to raise the rates charged to patients with private health insurance, launching a vicious cycle of spiraling health costs.
Debtors turn over a portion of their assets and in return their debt is wiped away.
Boyles spent five years repaying $12,000 in credit card bills she began accumulating as a freshman at Boise State University.
She supports a bill in Congress that would overhaul the U.S. Bankruptcy Code by making it harder for debtors to use a Chapter 7 filing to wipe away their debts.
And this year, after seven years of failed attempts, it appears Congress is ready to approve the bill, despite opposition from Democrats and others who say the new law would simply punish poor people without addressing the problems that bring people into
bankruptcy.
For banks and credit card companies, the measure could mean millions of dollars in recovered assets.
The rest of the Idaho delegation is firmly behind the bankruptcy reform bill.
About the author: Mike Adams is a consumer health advocate and award-winning journalist with a passion for sharing empowering information to help improve personal and planetary health He has authored and published thousands of articles, interviews, consumers guides, and books on topics like health and the environment, and he is well known as the creator of popular downloadable preparedness programs on financial collapse, emergency food storage, wilderness survival and home defense skills. Adams is an honest, independent journalist and accepts no money or commissions on the third-party products he writes about or the companies he promotes. In 2010, Adams launched TV.NaturalNews.com, a natural health video site featuring videos on holistic health and green living. He also launched an online retailer of environmentally-friendly products (BetterLifeGoods.com) and uses a portion of its profits to help fund non-profit endeavors. He's also the founder and CEO of a well known email mail merge software developer whose software, 'Email Marketing Director,' currently runs the NaturalNews email subscriptions. Adams volunteers his time to serve as the executive director of the Consumer Wellness Center, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, and practices nature photography, Capoeira, martial arts and organic gardening. He's also author a large number of health books offered by Truth Publishing and is the creator of numerous reference website including NaturalPedia.com and the free downloadable Honest Food Guide. His websites also include the free reference sites HerbReference.com and HealingFoodReference.com. Adams believes in free speech, free access to nutritional supplements and the innate healing ability of the human body. Known on the 'net as 'the Health Ranger,' Adams shares his ethics, mission statements and personal health statistics at www.HealthRanger.org
Have comments on this article? Post them here:
people have commented on this article.
Saturday, March 26, 2005
Email this article to a friend
Share
this article on: 
