Reply #9: I forget a lot about the arguments during the bankruptcy bill negotiations. [View All]

[napi21]

I really wish they had put a medical emergency exemption in it. I can also tell you my son haas 3 people in his neighborhood who are prime examples of why there ever was a bankruptcy bill.

Just as an example, one was married, no children, made $78,000 a year, and his wife worked at a pizza shop. They sspent the last five years buying everything that caught their fancy. A commercial power washer, top of the line Troybuilt rototiller, two new cars, a commercial log splitter, a 24 HP tractor, a 60" TV, and on and on. In addition to that, they ate out an average 5 nights a week, and it wasn't McDonalds! All was put on credit cards and they maxed out 4 of them. They refinanced their house 3 times to pay off the cc's, only to max them out again. They finally declared bankruptcy because they owed $62,000 on cc's and had a $1,700 house payment too. They're all pissed off now because he makes too much money to be permitted to file Chapter 7, and he's been told by the courts he's got to do the payment plan and pay off the debt.

The other two neighbors are in similar circumstances.

I can tell you, if I were a Senator, I would have voted for a bill to prevent people like that from declaring bankruptcy and dismissing their debt too.

I know there are a lot more emergency issues Congress has to deal with right now, but I'm hoping in the future they will add a medical exemption to that law.