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Friendly Atheist ✊ Faith-based "health share" companies have left many families in medical debt.

Approximately 1.5 million Americans participate in Christian “Health Care Sharing Ministries,” and every so often, we hear about their horror stories. The latest one, courtesy of Aria Bendix at NBC News, is an important reminder that these HCSMs need to be regulated and held accountable before more people get screwed over.

To make sense of what’s happening, it helps to understand what HCSMs are.

Groups like Samaritan Ministries and Liberty HealthShare ask everyone in the system to pay a specific amount into the insurance pool every month… but the companies don’t collect all the cash or send it to health care providers. For a fee, the company simply tells individuals where to send their money (e.g. Bob from Nebraska) and how much to send — or they just reimburse members themselves. If you need something covered, you just make a request.

That’s not really different from regular insurance, but it’s not regulated, not all services are covered, and the providers can cut you off at anytime if you become too expensive to insure. Even worse: If you do something they deem “immoral,” you won’t get any money at all. 

Continue reading @ Friendly Atheist.

Having A Baby? Good Luck If You Rely On A Christian "Health Care Sharing Ministry"

Friendly Atheist ✊ Faith-based "health share" companies have left many families in medical debt.

Approximately 1.5 million Americans participate in Christian “Health Care Sharing Ministries,” and every so often, we hear about their horror stories. The latest one, courtesy of Aria Bendix at NBC News, is an important reminder that these HCSMs need to be regulated and held accountable before more people get screwed over.

To make sense of what’s happening, it helps to understand what HCSMs are.

Groups like Samaritan Ministries and Liberty HealthShare ask everyone in the system to pay a specific amount into the insurance pool every month… but the companies don’t collect all the cash or send it to health care providers. For a fee, the company simply tells individuals where to send their money (e.g. Bob from Nebraska) and how much to send — or they just reimburse members themselves. If you need something covered, you just make a request.

That’s not really different from regular insurance, but it’s not regulated, not all services are covered, and the providers can cut you off at anytime if you become too expensive to insure. Even worse: If you do something they deem “immoral,” you won’t get any money at all. 

Continue reading @ Friendly Atheist.
Christian Health Care Ministries Friendly Atheist

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