Mountain View Regional Medical Center settles class action over unlawful debt collection
August 20, 2025EL PASO, TEXAS (KFOX14/CBS4) — A class action settlement was reached on Wednesday against Mountain View Regional Medical Center, involving more than 200 low-income patients who were allegedly unlawfully sued for medical debt.
As part of the settlement, the hospital will repay affected patients and provide an additional $625 per person.
Additionally, Mountain View Regional Medical Center is required to overhaul its billing and collection practices.
The settlement was announced at a press conference on Wednesday, with community members, advocates, and lawmakers highlighting the importance of this victory for patient protections.
The event called on all hospitals statewide to comply with the law, especially in light of potential federal Medicaid cuts and changes to the Marketplace, which could leave over 100,000 New Mexicans without health coverage, increasing the risk of medical debt.
“We know that this wasn’t the only hospital that was suing patients or selling their debt, which is prohibited under the law unless you determine those patients are not low income, so we know this is continuing to happen in the community and we want families and hospitals to know the law and families to know their rights,” Sovereign Hager, Legal Director of New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty, told KFOX14/CBS4 on Wednesday.
The settlement comes years after the lawsuit was first filed in 2022 by non-profit legal group, New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty, which claimed that the hospital’s actions violated New Mexico’s Patients’ Debt Collection Protection Act.
The New Mexico’s Patients’ Debt Collection Protection Act, signed into law in 2021, shields people with incomes less than two times the federal poverty level from debt collection action, including lawsuits.
According to the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty, which led the class action lawsuit, the hospital has taken more than 200 low-income patients to court in 2021.
In a previous statement to the Las Cruces Sun, Mountain View Regional Medical Center said, “Mountain View Regional Medical Center is aware of the requirements of the state law regarding medical debt collection and previously implemented policies and procedures to ensure compliance with the law. We are not aware of any departure from those policies and procedures. We will review the allegations in the lawsuit and work with the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty if the review identifies mistakes or departures from the hospital’s policies and procedures.”
Ruby Kirker, the lead plaintiff in the case, explained that Mountain View sued her for more than $6,000 after she was rushed to the hospital in 2021 while she was pregnant. She says the hospital did not check her income before taking her to court and that she qualifies for protection under the act.
Speaking to KFOX14/CBS4 on Wednesday, Kirker said she felt like she was taken advantage of, but that she wasn’t alone, stating, “I felt like if the second the bill comes, they don’t give you enough time to pay for it, and they take advantage of that.”
“I hope that this lets them know that the law is there and they have to follow it. It’s amazing that there are people out there willing to help us, and I hope this gives them the message to look at that and to help other people,” Kirker added.
Originally published in CBS 4 Local