[Siecje]

Wouldn't it still be outstanding on your credit report. It's debt that you didn't pay.

How long does it stay on your credit report?

[desigooner]

IIRC, these accounts fall off the credit report in 7 years from the date that was deemed as last activity date on that account.

[Siecje]

So why would anyone declare bankruptcy?

[csours]

If you are sued and found liable for more money than you can reasonably pay, you are more or less forced into bankruptcy.

Declaring bankruptcy generally lets you keep your primary house and car; without bankruptcy those could be taken from you.

[brokentone]

Well defaulted medical debt is in a different category than regular debt.

[CaptSpify]

How so?

[brokentone]

Some of the difference:

> differentiating medical from non-medical collection agency accounts. This will help ensure that medical collections have a lower impact on the score, commensurate with the credit risk they represent. These enhancements help lenders because it leads to a more predictive score. The median FICO Score for consumers whose only major negative references are medical collections will increase by 25 points.

http://www.fico.com/en/newsroom/fico-score-9-introduces-refi...

http://time.com/money/3092005/fico-credit-score-changes-fair...