On Sunday, June 5, 2016, late night talk show host John Oliver made TV history. He did it by forgiving the medical bill debt of over 9,000 people: a grand total of $14,922,261.76. The most shocking part in all of this may be the fact that it only cost him about $60,000.
Yes, only $60,000.
This was possible because Oliver acquired these people's debt through his own debt collecting company, Central Asset Recovery Professionals (CARP).
He broke the record for the largest one-time giveaway, which was previously set by Oprah Winfrey in 2004 when she gave every member in her audience a car (a prize worth around eight million dollars).
The only problem with Winfrey's giveaway was that the 276 people who received this prize would have to pay a high ($7,000 at most) tax if they wanted to keep the car. But, the people that Oliver's giveaway affected will not have to worry about making any payments.
Now, let's not get carried away with the greatness of what Oliver did, but by the message he wanted to convey by doing this.
The whole purpose of this giveaway was to publicize the major problem with debt collecting companies. The entire episode before the giveaway was spent highlighting how aggressive debt collectors can get with people and how screwed up the whole process is.
He gave examples of some people who have really had their lives ruined by debt and collectors. One woman's husband spent four days in the hospital and racked up an $80,000 medical bill that would not be covered by insurance. Others were threatened by collectors via phone, with one collector even threatening to arrest a man's dog, shoot it and eat it.
As he mentioned multiple times in the show, starting a debt collecting company is ridiculously easy.
"Any idiot can get into it, and I can prove that to you, because I'm an idiot and I started a debt buying company and it was disturbingly easy."
He even abbreviated the name CARP after the bottom-feeding fish (a hit at "bottom-feeding" debt collectors).
He could have used this company to royally screw over debt-owers, like most debt collecting companies do. But instead he used it to make a huge statement, one that will go down in history.
"There would be absolutely nothing wrong with that, except for the fact that absolutely everything is wrong with that!"
He acquired all of the debt and then transferred it to a nonprofit that works to forgive debt: RIP Medical Debt. RIP works to help those who cannot possibly pay off their medical bills. They search through portfolios (like those that Oliver donated to them) and work to pay off their debt.
This isn't the first time that Oliver has done something so charitable. In another episode where he discussed the topic of Televangelists, he donated $70,000 to Doctors Without Borders.
This action has people wondering why more celebrities aren't using their power and money to do similar things, especially since it cost around $60,000 for Oliver to pay off millions in debt. This amount is almost nothing to many celebrities. Oliver even compared it to buying a nearly $60,000 Versace jacket.
Hopefully, Oliver's actions will bring more awareness to the debt issue in our country and to RIP Medical Debt. They've already seen an increase in donations, and hope to continue to see it rise.
If you don't watch Oliver's show, you're missing out. Oliver is always bringing awareness to issues like this one and always backing up what he says with the receipts. No one does it quite like Oliver. The show airs on HBO, but each episode is uploaded to YouTube.
You can donate to RIP Medical Debt to help them pay off unpayable medical debt. You can choose to donate specifically to veterans or to anyone. Any amount helps.
