Logo for InfluenceWatch InfluenceWatch

Donate
Person

Allison Sesso

Nationality:

American
Residence:

New York, New York
Occupation:

President and CEO of Undue Medical Debt

Contact InfluenceWatch with suggested edits or tips for additional profiles.

Allison Sesso is president and CEO of Undue Medical Debt (formerly RIP Medical Debt) which partners with organizations and leverages donations to purchase medical debt at a decreased price then forgive the debt owed by individuals. Her work aligns with left-of-center values around economic equity and broadening health care access. She also advocates for systemic and policy changes to reduce medical debt. 1

As of 2025, Sesso was living in Queens, New York. She earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from the State University of New York and a master’s in public affairs from Baruch College in New York City. 2

Early Career

Allison Sesso is an activist based in New York City. She began her career as a program coordinator for the left-leaning student activist group New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPIRG). 3

In 2003, Sesso joined the Human Services Council (HSC) of New York as its deputy executive director. She became executive director in 2014. She held that role until she left the organization in 2020. 3 The HSC of New York supports an alliance of 170 nonprofits in New York City through advocacy, policy change, workforce support, and coalition building within the human services sector. 4

Some of HSC’s initiatives include resources for immigrant support groups such as the New York Immigration Coalition and the Migration Policy Institute; leading the Nonprofit Infrastructure Capital Investment Program in partnership with the local chapter of Catholic Charities, the United Jewish Appeal-Federation of Jewish Philanthropies of New York, and United Neighborhood Houses to secure grants for projects to support nonprofits human services groups in New York; 5 and organizing the JustPay campaign to fight for increased wages for human services workers across New York. 6

HSC members include the AARP of New York, the Center for Alternative Sentencing and Employment Services, the Coalition for Hispanic Family Services, the National Association of Social Workers, Opportunities for a Better Tomorrow, Sanctuary for Families, and the Fortune Society. 7

While leading HSC, Sesso spearheaded the development of government contract rating tools to assess risks and led negotiations with New York local and state governments to develop policies and procedures on how nonprofit organizations and the government should work together. Her Sustain our Sanctuary Campaign resulted in $300 million in government investments in nonprofit human services contracts. 8

Undue Medical Debt

In January 2020, Sesso joined Undue Medical Debt as its president and CEO. 3 Founded in 2014 as RIP Medical Debt, it changed its name to Undue Medical Debt in April 2024. 9 It works to “end medical debt” by using donated funds to buy debt portfolios from debt collectors and health-care providers at reduced cost and then forgiving the debt. It targets debt for those individuals who earn four times (or less) the federal poverty level and whose debt exceeds their annual income. 10  11

Undue Medical Debt receives large grants from the federal government and partners with governments at all levels. For example, in January 2024 Sesso worked with New York Mayor Eric Adams (D) to establish a program to forgive over $2 billion in medical debt for up to a half million New Yorkers over the course of three years. 12 In July 2025, Sesso and Undue Medical Debt partnered with the State of Michigan to purchase over $144 million in medical debt for over 200,000 residents. 13 In August 2025, Sesso partnered with Delaware Governor Matt Meyer (D) to forgive up to $50 million in medical debt for over 17,000 residents of Delaware. 14

In addition to government partnerships, Undue Medical Debt relies on philanthropic contributions. From 2020 to 2024, liberal philanthropist MacKenzie Scott awarded Undue Medical Debt a total of $130 million. 15

Recognition

Sesso was recognized by TIME Magazine as a TIME100 Philanthropy 2025 Leader for her work at Undue Medical Debt. According to the TIME100 entry, Undue Medical Debt was able to increase the amount of debt it paid off from a total of $1 billion in 2019 to $15 million in 2025 under Sesso’s leadership. Others recognized as Leaders included Darren Walker, Mark Suzman, and Alexander Soros. 16

Work with Other Organizations

As of 2025, Sesso was board chair of Hollaback! (now called Right to Be), an activist organization fighting street harassment. 17

She is an advisory council member of Fund the People, a project of Community Partners which advocates investment in the people who lead and work for nonprofit human services organizations. 17  18

Sesso is a member of the Change Agent Leaders Organization which brings together the leaders of nonprofit organizations for information sharing, peer learning, and leadership best practices. 19

Politics

Sesso has contributed to several Democratic political candidates through the years, including former President Barack Obama, former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, former New York City Councilwoman Helen Rosenthal, New York Attorney General Letitia James, New York City mayoral candidate Dianne Morales, former President Joe Biden, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, New York Governor Kathy Hochul, and former presidential candidate Kamala Harris. 20

References

  1. LinkedIn – Allison Sesso. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.linkedin.com/in/allison-sesso/
  2. LinkedIn – Allison Sesso. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.linkedin.com/in/allison-sesso/details/education/
  3. LinkedIn – Allison Sesso. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.linkedin.com/in/allison-sesso/details/experience/
  4. “About HSC.” Human Services Council. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://humanservicescouncil.org/about/
  5. “Initiatives and Campaigns.” Human Services Council. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://humanservicescouncil.org/campaigns/
  6. #Justpay homepage. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.justpayny.org/
  7. “List of HSC Members.” Human Services Council. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://humanservicescouncil.org/hsc-member-list/
  8. “Allison Sesso.” Governing. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.governing.com/authors/allison-sesso.html
  9. “National Nonprofit RIP Medical Debt Announces Exciting Rebrand to Undue Medical Debt.” Undue Medical Debt. April 15, 2024. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://unduemedicaldebt.org/press-release/national-nonprofit-rip-medical-debt-announces-exciting-rebrand-to-undue-medical-debt/
  10. “Undue Medical Debt.” Charity Watch. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://blog.charitywatch.org/undue-medical-debt-r-i-p-medical-debt-charity-rating/
  11. “Undue Medical Debt Announces the Appointment of Allison Sesso as Executive Director.” Undue Medical Debt. January 27, 2024. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://unduemedicaldebt.org/press-release/rip-medical-debt-announces-the-appointment-of-allison-sesso-as-executive-director/
  12. “Mayor Adams to Relieve Over $2 Billion in Medical Debt for Hundreds of Thousands of Working-Class New Yorkers.” NYC Office of the Mayor. January 22 2024. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.nyc.gov/mayors-office/news/2024/01/mayor-adams-relieve-2-billion-medical-debt-hundreds-thousands-working-class
  13. Colin Jackson. “Medical debt erased for thousands of Michiganders.” Michigan Public NPR. July 17, 2025. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.michiganpublic.org/health/2025-07-17/medical-debt-erased-for-thousands-of-michiganders
  14. LinkedIn – Undue Medical Debt. Posted August 2025. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7356768331967655936/
  15. “Undue Medical Debt.” Yield Giving search. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://yieldgiving.com/gifts/?q=undue+medical+debt
  16. “TIME100 Philanthropy 2025.” Time. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://time.com/collections/time100-philanthropy-2025/
  17. “Allison Sesso.” Human Services Council. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://humanservicescouncil.org/employee/allison-sesso/
  18. “About.” Fund the People. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://fundthepeople.org/more-about/
  19. “CALO Member Spotlight: Allison Sesso, CEO of Undue Medical Debt.” CALO. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.thecalo.org/post/calo-member-spotlight-allison-sesso-ceo-of-undue-medical-debt
  20. “Allison Sesso.” OpenSecrets Donor Lookup. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.opensecrets.org/donor-lookup/results?name=Allison+Sesso&order=desc&sort=D
  See an error? Let us know!