The Billionaire's Band Aid: What MacKenzie Scott's Medical Debt Relief Reveals About Philanthropy and Policy MacKenzie Scott, ex wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, has become a prominent figure in philanthropic circles for her large scale medical debt relief efforts.
Her donations to Undue Medical Debt (formerly RIP Medical Debt) have abolished an astonishing $40 billion in debt, but examining the scope and limitations of this approach is essential.
Scott's innovation lies in recognizing that hospitals and physician groups were selling uncollectible patient debt at fire sale prices.