N.Y. Public Health Law § 4925: Definitions

§ 4925. Definitions. As used in this article, the following terms

shall have the following meanings:

1. "Medical debt" means an obligation or alleged obligation of a

consumer to pay any amount whatsoever related to the receipt of health

care services, products, or devices provided to a person by a hospital

licensed under article twenty-eight of this chapter, a health care

professional authorized under title eight of the education law or an

ambulance service certified under article thirty of this chapter.

Medical debt does not include debt charged to a credit card unless the

credit card is issued under an open-ended or closed-ended plan offered

specifically for the payment of health care services, products, or

devices provided to a person.

2. "Collection entity" means any individual, partnership, corporation,

trust, estate, co-operative, association, government or government

subdivision, agency or other entity that either purchases medical debt

or collects medical debt on behalf of another entity.

3. "Consumer reporting agency" shall have the same meaning as such

term is defined in section three hundred eighty-a of the general

business law.