Photo of Jennifer Holloway

Jennifer Holloway

  • Hosted by Tzedek DC, Inc.
  • Sponsored by Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, PayPal
  • Service location Washington, District of Columbia
  • Law school University of California, Berkeley School of Law
  • Issue area Consumer Rights, Economic Justice
  • Fellowship class year 2022
  • Program Design-Your-Own Fellowship

The Project

Jennifer (she/her/hers) works to eliminate medical debt in Washington, D.C., with hopes to advance economic and racial equity through direct representation, policy advocacy, and hospital-based reform.

Medical debt is the largest source of debt Americans owe collections agencies. Residents of D.C. hold over $700 million in medical debt, with households of color in the area over 300% more likely to hold medical debt than their white neighbors. This medical debt leads to many negative financial and psychological consequences. Although D.C. has expanded Medicaid eligibility, many thousands of residents are still uninsured or under-insured and unable to pay steep medical bills, particularly in light of the impacts of COVID-19. No local legal service provider in D.C. currently focuses on addressing medical debt.

Fellowship Plans

Through her project, Jennifer will provide direct legal representation to D.C. residents holding medical debt. She will conduct community education sessions to mitigate future medical debt loads by helping community members access hospital financial assistance. She will advocate for increased protections for holders of medical debt under D.C. laws. Finally, Jennifer will collaborate with hospitals in the area to help them sell their written-off bad debt to RIP Medical Debt, which will then forgive the debt entirely.

Media

Tzedek DC’s Jennifer Holloway on CFPB Medical Debt Panel

Equal Justice Works Awards Medical Debt Fellowship at Tzedek DC

Re-thinking medical debt in D.C. is an important step forward in eliminating the racial wealth gap and advancing equity within our nation’s capital.

Jennifer Holloway /
2022 Equal Justice Works Fellow

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