An increasing number of Americans are finding themselves mired in credit card debt, with little hope of repaying this debt in a reasonable amount of time. Credit card debts are classified as unsecured debt, or debt that is not secured by any sort of collateral or property. Unsecured debt is not a priority debt in bankruptcy proceedings; in other words, other debts, including secured debts and debts that are not dischargeable in bankruptcy proceedings, like student loans, are deemed to be more important than unsecured debts, and thus must be paid first. This means that any successful bankruptcy action is likely to result in the partial or complete discharge of outstanding credit card debts. As a result, since bankruptcy eliminates credit card debt, people who have become overwhelmed by their credit card debt should consider filing bankruptcy, particularly if they do not have the income sufficient to repay their debts.