John Oliver is trying to fix societal ills one step at a time — and he took a giant leap Sunday, to the tune of $15 million.
The “Last Week Tonight” host legally purchased $14,922,261.76 in outstanding and overdue medical debt — and with one press of a giant, fake prop button, he forgave it all.
The move even topped Oprah Winfrey‘s signature “You get a car! You get a car! Everybody gets a car!” moment, becoming the biggest one-time giveaway in television history, Oliver said.
Of course, he and HBO didn’t pay $15 million for the privilege — they gobbled up all that debt for a fraction of pennies on the dollar. Essentially, they spent about 60 grand for the whole lot.
Generous? Yes. Thoughtful? Yes. Giant asterisk? Yes.
Still, the 9,000 people for whom Oliver waved his magic wand will probably appreciate the silence of no more collections calls. Watch the video above.