US doctor forgives $650,000 in medical bills for cancer patients

After working with billing company, doctor forgives debts of 200 patients amid pandemic that wreaked havoc on their personal finances

An Arkansas oncologist realised how hard his patients had been hit financially by the pandemic after enlisting a debt collection firm, and decided to erase $650,000 worth of medical debts for around 200 of his patients.

After working with a billing company for months, Dr Omar Atiq , who is originally from Pakistan, realised that many of his patients were never going to be able to pay back what they owed for their treatments. "My wife and I, as a family, we thought about it and looked at forgiving all the debt. We saw that we could do it and then just went ahead and did it," he told Good Morning America.

Over Christmas, around 200 of Dr Atiq's former patients with debts ranging from hundreds to thousands of dollars were sent a note that said: "Although various health insurances pay most of the bills for a majority of patients, even the deductibles and co-pays can be burdensome. 

"Unfortunately, that is the way our health care system currently works. Arkansas Cancer Clinic is closing its practice after over 29 years of dedicated service to the community. The clinic has decided to forego all balances owed to the clinic by its patients. Happy Holidays.”

Dr Atiq started the Arkansas Cancer Clinic in Pine Bluff in 1991. He's now teaching at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock after shutting down his clinic last year because of a shortage of staff, after almost 30 years.

Dr Atiq said that the financial burden of his patients made him "uncomfortable" and always "tugged" at him.

"You add to it the absolute devastation that the pandemic has wrought, and you think 'thank God' that we’re fairly comfortable and this was something we could at least do to help the community," he added.

The clinic also worked with a billing company to cancel the debt to make sure that the patients' financial standing was not negatively impacted by not having paid their bills.

The president of the debt collection company said that Dr Atiq was “a very caring individual,” BBC News reported.

After finishing a fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, Dr Atiq moved to Pine Bluff after getting a job offer from an administrator at Jefferson Regional Medical Center, according to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

After becoming the first non-white president of the Arkansas Medical Society in 2013, Dr Atiq was named chairman-elect of the board of governors of the American College of Physicians in 2018.

"I believe the opportunities that have come my way are, in part, because of where I am," Dr Atiq told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

Before forgiving the debt, Dr Atiq called David Wroten, executive vice president of the Arkansas Medical Society, a physician advocacy group, for advice, wondering if there could be anything inappropriate about forgiving the debts. Mr Wroten couldn't imagine a possibility where it would be improper.

Mr Wroten said that Dr Atiq was "one of the smartest doctors I have ever known, but he is also one of the most compassionate doctors I have ever known".

He went on to say that many don't have the means to pay for their care. "There are people who will pay on their bills for 20 years, maybe $10 a month," he said.

Dr Atiq said that the amount of outstanding debt was so high because they had never turned a patient away because of lack of money or insurance.

“I've always considered it a high honour and privilege to be someone's physician.” 

Dr Atiq said he considered it to be “more important than anything else”.