Senator Roger Marshall Sent Poor People to Jail

A New York Times investigation revealed that U.S. Senator Roger Marshall (R-KS) sued more than 700 of his former patients over unpaid medical bills during his career as an obstetrician-gynecologist in Kansas. Some debts were as small as $101.

• Arrests: Missing court dates for these debts led to 81 arrest warrants for patients. Some patients spent time in jail.
• Interest and Seizures: The practice charged an 18% annual interest rate on the unpaid balances and garnished patient wages or bank accounts. [1, 2, 3]

Some of the patients Marshall sued were new mothers with outstanding medical bills from childbirth, while others faced debts related to pregnancy complications.

Meischa Zimmerman said her $3,596 debt from an emergency Cesarean section grew to more than $7,000 with 18% interest. She said that she was arrested in front of her 2-year-old daughter after missing a court date.

“I asked them quietly: Can you not handcuff me in front of my daughter?” Zimmerman said.

She said she was arrested three times, in 2011, 2013 and 2016, over the unpaid bill from a 2009 delivery. During her first arrest, she was eight months pregnant and at home with her 2-year-old child. Court records indicate that she was among the 81 patients whose arrests occurred after missed court dates.

Another patient, Kellie Clutts, was sued over a $129 bill. “I had every intention to pay, I was just struggling,” she said. Marshall sued her when her daughter was 9 months old over a postpartum visit and eventually garnished her bank account.

In another case, a woman sued over a $1,200 bill in 2004 asked the court not to hold her responsible for care she received for herself and her twins, whom she had lost. She was still ordered to pay the bill.

Senator Marshall was not hurting……

 In 2015, Marshall earned about $780,000 from his medical practice and the hospital, according to his 2016 financial disclosure report. His most recent financial disclosure puts his net worth between $3 million and $9.8 million. 

According to early returns, Senator Marshall was defeated for re-election.