The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) published an interpretive rule on October 28, 2025 that issued new guidance prohibiting states from removing medical debt from consumers’ credit reports. This rule goes into effect immediately.
Currently 15 states, including California, Rhode Island, and Maryland have passed laws to limit medical debt reporting.
The CFPB said in the interpretative rule that the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FRCA), “generally preempts State laws that touch on broad areas of credit reporting.” This was first reported by The Lever and Bloomberg Law. The new policy would replace a July 2022 interpretive rule that the CFPB withdrew in May 2025.
This new guidance from the CFPB says that the FCRA, a law passed in 1970, “has always preempted State law, but the scope of preemption has changed over time.”
This new guidance comes after a federal judge blocked a Biden-era CFPB rule that barred outstanding medical bills from credit reports.
Americollect will continue to follow this interpretive rule and how it impacts credit reporting in states that have passed laws barring reporting medical debt.
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