Monroe bankruptcies through the roof

By many measurements Monroe County's economy in the autumn of 2008 is in acute distress.
Consider these disturbing facts:
--There was a nearly eight-fold increase in personal bankruptcies in 2007 compared to 2006 in Monroe County, as filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilkes-Barre.
An analysis of the filings reveals that in the year 2006 a total of 49 Monroe County residents filed for bankruptcy.
In 2007 there were 372 bankruptcies filed by Monroe residents, nearly a eight-fold increase in a single year.
So far in 2008 there have been 338 bankruptcy filings by Monroe County residents (and a few small businesses),--and there are two and half months to go.
August, 2008, was the worst month with 67 bankruptcies filed from Monroe County.
---Surely the housing crunch plays a role, but bankruptcy lawyers report the major problem pushing folks into bankruptcy is under or uninsured medical expenses; then comes flexible mortgage rate resets and unmanageable credits card and home equity loan payments.
Job losses in the home building businesses are a big problem. One leading builder has seen a four-fold drop in sales, and there have been multiple layoffs in the building trades. Sub-contractors have been hit hard with many staffs cut in half or more.