In the past several years, medical debt has become more burdensome for many families. So much so that medical bills have become a major cause of personal bankruptcy. It’s not that people have no health insurance. Many individuals who cite medical debt as the cause of their bankruptcy were actually covered under a health insurance plan at the time the medical expenses were incurred. The problem is that certain medical expenses are often uncovered. Debt settlement may be an alternative to bankruptcy for dealing with your medical expenses.

A new version of FICO’s credit score formula will raise the scores of people with medical debts, or who paid off other debts in collection but people with unpaid debts on their record that aren’t related to health care would see their scores fall, making it harder for them to get a personal loan or credit card, or raising the interest rates they’ll have to pay, FICO said.

Black Friday and Black Friday Ads have many shoppers going a bit overboard with the savings to be had when opening a store credit card during the holidays. Considering the Black Friday deals madness, it’s no small surprise that some customers get caught up in the recent trend of springing for store credit cards that come with special Black Friday perks attached.

The Wells Fargo Secured Card has a few restrictions on eligibility. If you have declared bankruptcy within the past 12 months or have any unsettled liens, you won’t qualify. Interestingly, you only need to be 18 to qualify unless you live in Alabama (where you have to be 19) or in Mississippi or Puerto Rico (where you have to be 21).

According to Experian.com, an unpaid tax lien will most definitely affect your credit score negatively. How much, however, varies since Experian notes that it depends on an individual’s overall track record of paying bills on time. The important thing is to find ways to get the IRS lien paid before considering options you have that can remove a current or old and paid lien from your credit score.