Crowdfunding for medical bills avoids the core problem, says the author

IIn the United States, healthcare costs have spiraled so out of control that medical crowdfunding has become commonplace. The idea is simple: turn your social network into a financial safety net to cover the costs of expensive treatments or long-term illnesses. Millions of Americans have launched crowdfunding campaigns for medical bills, and tens of millions have donated to them, mainly through the undisputed industry leader GoFundMe.

Nora Kenworthy, a professor of nursing and health studies at the University of Washington, Bothell, has spent years studying the world of healthcare crowdfunding—and how it ultimately exacerbates the inequalities that already determine who gets medical debt.

In her new book, “Crowded Out: The True Costs of Crowdfunding Healthcare,” to be published Tuesday, she looks at what she calls the “toxicities” that drive medical crowdfunding campaigns. STAT spoke with Kenworthy about these issues, as well as the difficult moral decisions potential donors face when deciding whether to contribute. The following interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.