Trinity Moravian Church in Winston-Salem, N.C., has forgiven nearly $11 million in medical debt through partnerships with RIP Medical Debt. In its most recent drive announced in February 2025, the church raised $25,000 and used it to erase more than $2 million in outstanding medical bills.

The trick is that medical debt sells on the used debt market for pennies on the dollar. Here's why: hospitals and creditors sell unpaid medical bills to debt buyers at huge discounts because they know many low-income people cannot afford to pay. RIP Medical Debt buys these discounted debt portfolios, then forgives them completely. When the church donates $25,000, it purchases $2 million in debt at that discounted price and cancels it — no strings, no taxes, no catch.

RIP targets people who need help most: those earning under four times the federal poverty line, or those whose medical debt adds up to 5 percent or more of their yearly income.

Rev. John Jackman leads the effort at Trinity Moravian under the Debt Jubilee Project. The first campaign forgave $1.3 million in debt for over 1,000 households. The second, which CNN covered in April 2023, forgave $3.3 million for 3,355 local families. The wider Moravian Church denomination has now scaled the model nationally through the Debt Jubilee Project for the Healing of the World, raising more than $100,000 across its churches. Total forgiven debt across all Moravian efforts now reaches nearly $11 million.

When medical debt is forgiven, it stops hurting your credit score. That matters because a damaged credit record makes it harder to borrow money for a car, a house, or a small business. For people who receive a forgiveness notice, the relief is immediate and shows up on their credit report.

Anyone can run this playbook. The RIP Medical Debt partnership does not require special technology or infrastructure. Any church, community group, or nonprofit that can raise money can do the same transaction. The Moravian Church's success spreading it nationally shows the model works in multiple places. The only real limit is how much money people are willing to donate compared to how much distressed medical debt is available to buy.

Trinity Moravian Church is at 220 East Sprague Street in Winston-Salem. Rev. Jackman can be reached at 336-724-5541.