Listen: He Was Denied Care Because He Owed His Doctor Less Than $100

Ariane and Samantha Buck of Arizona have had their lives upended by $50,000 in medical debt. They rely on family to provide Christmas gifts for their three children. But Ariane Buck was still surprised when his doctor refused to see him because he owed a balance of less than $100 to the practice. “That’s just not right,” Buck told KHN’s Noam N. Levey. “Everyone should at least be able to get to a doctor when they feel ill.”

Levey discussed the Bucks’ predicament with Mary Louise Kelly on NPR’s “All Things Considered” on June 22.

The Bucks are among tens of millions of Americans who have crippling medical debt, according to an ongoing KHN and NPR investigation, “Diagnosis: Debt.” Levey discussed the investigation with A Martínez on NPR’s “Morning Edition” on June 16.

KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF—an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Learn more about KFF.

<h1>Listen: He Was Denied Care Because He Owed His Doctor Less Than $100</h1>
<div>		<time class="posted-on" datetime="2022-06-28T02:00:00-07:00">
			June 28, 2022		</time>
		</div>
<p>Ariane and Samantha Buck of Arizona have had their lives upended by $50,000 in medical debt. They rely on family to provide Christmas gifts for their three children. But Ariane Buck was still surprised when his doctor refused to see him because he owed a balance of less than $100 to the practice. “That’s just not right,” Buck told KHN’s Noam N. Levey. “Everyone should at least be able to get to a doctor when they feel ill.” </p><p>Levey discussed the Bucks’ predicament with Mary Louise Kelly on NPR’s “All Things Considered” on June 22.  </p><p>The Bucks are among tens of millions of Americans who have crippling medical debt, according to an ongoing KHN and NPR investigation, “<a href="https://kffhealthnews.org/news/article/diagnosis-debt-investigation-100-million-americans-hidden-medical-debt/">Diagnosis: Debt</a>.” Levey discussed the investigation with A Martínez on NPR’s “Morning Edition” on June 16.</p><ul><li><a href="https://californiahealthline.org/news/article/listen-he-was-denied-care-because-he-owed-his-doctor-less-than-100/?share=facebook">				Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)				Facebook			</a></li><li><a href="https://californiahealthline.org/news/article/listen-he-was-denied-care-because-he-owed-his-doctor-less-than-100/?share=linkedin">				Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)				LinkedIn			</a></li><li><a href="https://californiahealthline.org/news/article/listen-he-was-denied-care-because-he-owed-his-doctor-less-than-100/?share=x">				Click to share on X (Opens in new window)				X			</a></li><li><a href="mailto:?subject=%5BShared%20Post%5D%20Listen%3A%20He%20Was%20Denied%20Care%20Because%20He%20Owed%20His%20Doctor%20Less%20Than%20%24100&body=https%3A%2F%2Fcaliforniahealthline.org%2FNDIxMjE2&share=email">				Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)				Email			</a></li><li><a href="https://californiahealthline.org/news/article/listen-he-was-denied-care-because-he-owed-his-doctor-less-than-100/#print?share=print">				Click to print (Opens in new window)				Print			</a></li><li>				<a href="https://californiahealthline.org/news/article/listen-he-was-denied-care-because-he-owed-his-doctor-less-than-100/view/republish/">					Republish This Story				</a>			</li></ul><em><a href="https://kffhealthnews.org/about-us">KFF Health News</a> is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF—an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Learn more about <a href="https://www.kff.org/about-us">KFF</a>.</em><p><a href="https://californiahealthline.org/morning-briefing/">Subscribe</a> to KFF Health News' free Morning Briefing.</p>

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