A Florida county will use leftover federal COVID-19 relief funds to pay off medical debts of county residents. Orange County commissioners agreed to spend $4.5 million in leftover funds from the American Rescue Plan‚ becoming the first Florida county to do so. Florida county to use COVID-19 money to pay residents' medical debts | Just The News https://t.co/jXB1cmVXNj — John Solomon (@jsolomonReports) February 26‚ 2024 Health News Florida reports: Orange County said no date is set for the next discussion of medical debt relief and the processes and details have not yet been determined. The group Central Florida Jobs With Justice was pushing for almost twice the funding‚ about $8.5 million‚ which would have covered some 300‚000 residents. Orange would be the first county in Florida to use COVID funding to clear medical debts. Tara Felten also spoke during public comment‚ arguing medical debt and basic needs are interconnected. “We’ve been told that medical debt relief is a low priority due to focusing on issues like housing and food‚” Felten said. “We‚ of course‚ agree that residents need to have their basic needs met. But to claim that debt isn’t a direct link to a family’s ability‚ or lack of ability‚ to provide for themselves is a grave misunderstanding of the realities of poor and working-class communities.” “Medical debt relief is important‚” Commissioner Maribel Gomez Cordero said‚ according to The Center Square. “I want to help our community with this problem‚” she added. Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings commented that medical debt relief is a “negotiated process” with medical providers. COVID-19 money will pay residents' medical debtshttps://t.co/WvpftUqakv — The Center Square (@thecentersquare) February 26‚ 2024 From The Center Square: Other governments such as Cook County‚ Ill.‚ and New Orleans have approved similar programs‚ Demings said. “We do have the experience of those communities‚” he said. “If we make the decision that we want to participate in the medical relief program‚ at least there are some other metropolitan communities that have gone before us. They can better explain to us their outcome‚ how did it work within their respective jurisdictions.” Health care is a right‚ said Vice Mayor Nicole Wilson. “There shouldn’t be some kind of qualification in a country this wealthy‚” she said. However‚ she questioned whether the county could negotiate directly with health care providers without having to use a third party nonprofit specializing in that field‚ which Wilson described as a “middle man.” Third-party negotiators can be valuable in bringing about debt settlement‚ Demings said. Orange County is located in Central Florida and has a population of around 1.4 million. Orlando is its county seat.