No one tracks wage garnishments either federally or at the state level, and that’s a key reason they get little public attention. As a result, essential workers and others who were lucky enough to keep their jobs have still been at risk of forfeiting a portion of their paychecks. Wage garnishments can run indefinitely once begun. But this didn’t help people like Lugo who were the target of actions that began before the closures. The main protection Americans have gotten from debt collectors has been inadvertent, a byproduct of state courts being closed to most hearings, including those pushed by debt collectors. The CDC has more information on what to do if you are sick. Note: If you develop emergency warning signs for COVID-19, such as difficulty breathing or bluish lips, get medical attention immediately. Help Us Continue Reporting on COVID-19Īre you a public health worker or front-line medical provider? Do you work for or with a government agency involved in the effort to protect the public? Have you or your family personally been affected? Show us what we should be covering or serve as an expert to make sure we’re on track. But one of the most aggressive and common forms of debt collection has generally been allowed to continue: seizure of wages for old consumer debts. And when it sent $300 billion in stimulus checks out to families, many states took steps to make sure that debt collectors didn’t grab the money. Congress halted a substantial portion of evictions, foreclosures and collection on student loans. The company began in late March to seize a portion of his wages to collect on that debt - one that he says wasn’t even his.įederal, state and local officials have all taken some steps to protect Americans from the ravages of the economic crash due to COVID-19. Get Our Top InvestigationsĮmail address This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.īut despite a global pandemic, Capital One didn’t forget about him. He lost track of the days, only orienting himself by the need to juggle care with his ex-wife of their two young children who were now out of school. At one moment he might be enlisted to help a team of doctors or nurses put on their full-body protective equipment and then he would rush to disinfect another team. Now he was working 16-hour days, often overnight. He normally gathered patient information at the front desk of a radiology clinic in orderly shifts, 9 to 5. But when the coronavirus hit the city this March, it wasn’t on his mind.Īt Mount Sinai in Manhattan, where he works, he’d been drafted into the hospital’s frenzied effort against the virus. Since 2018, Capital One has been a looming presence in Julio Lugo’s life, ever since the company sued him, as it did 29,000 other New Yorkers that year, over an unpaid credit card. Sign up to receive our biggest stories as soon as they’re published. ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power.
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