Health insurance alternative that we are looking at.

[frkelly74]

There is an organization called Samaritan Ministries that offers a health care cost sharing program. It is not insurance but it assesses a fee per family that gets sent directly to a member who has filed a claim and proved expenses. It is truly faith based and you must promise that you meet criteria such as being a believer in the Triune God of the Bible and not engaging in behavior that is prohibited in the Bible. You have to attend Church and have a "note" from your Pastor. You can not smoke, you can not drink alcohol to the point of drunkenness. You can not turn in expenses less than $300 and expect to be reimbursed. The assessment for a two parent family with children is $370 a month. It relies on the prayers and contributions of other believers to help you out in time of medical need. No expenses go to maintaining big impressive real estate and big impressive salaries for a big wig CEO with 15 secretaries on the top floor.

I wonder if anyone has experience with this Ministry. We have downloaded the app and personally see no downside to it.

[starmac]

No ceo and secretaries, who takes care of the 370 a month, and decides who needs it the most????

[C.F.Plinker]

Can you get audited financial reports for the last 3 years. If this is not insurance will you be on the hook for the Affordable Care Act penalties?

[JeffinNZ]

Sounds like a recruitment drive to me.

[oldred]

One downside is that the funds are going to be controlled by people who are bound mostly by honesty and you will just have to trust that they will treat everyone fairly and that the funds will be properly used, just because it's a faith based church run organization does not mean those funds will be immune to embezzlement or other mis-use.

[parson48]

We were members of Samaritan for several years. When I reached retirement age, I had insurance that began.

My wife underwent surgery while with Samaritan and it worked as advertised. We received cards and gifts from folks around the country.

I don't know how Obamacare will impact this kind of need sharing ministry.

[frkelly74]

Well I was reading the book and it appears that there are some paid personnel and one of your assessment payments each year goes to pay that overhead. They do the publishing of the needs as they are approved. The ones who approve the needs appear to be elected volunteers. My objection was overstated in the original perhaps, I object to the building of monumental buildings and overpaying executives with big staffs. By the way, there no shareholders involved that expect to make money on their investments. The money you pay in goes either to administrate the plan because you send it there, or directly to a person in need because you send it there. No expensive TV ads or trips to the Bahamas or new Ferraris for the execs.

They have been in existence since 1991. I heard about them shortly after they opened up and at the time they did not allow any alcohol consumption, they have apparently loosened up that requirement a little. They have IRS recognition as a 501(c)3 charity. There will be a form to fill out to avoid the ObamaCare penalty. Members of a faith based care sharing ministries are not subject to the penalties.


I am certainly not trying to recruit anybody. Just looking for feedback. The bunch on here is a widely experienced and level headed, so this is where I come to get advice impressions and or anecdotal evidence of the worth of lots of things.


I am dead certain that there is and has been and always will be abuses, it is the way of the world, no surprise, but it will not be government controlled abuses. Plus by prohibiting certain destructive behaviors like smoking, alcohol and drug abuse, sex outside of marriage , there can be a whole list of ailments that you shouldn't have to deal with. I am in agreement with this 100%. By the way this would seem to work against the recruitment comment above.

The comments so far have made me reread some of the booklet and it is clearer to me than it was .
And thanks for the "I've been there " comment. that helps a lot.

Given the fact that on the market place come on website we were quoted a monthly premium of $1000 dollars with an $11000 yearly deductible, opting out is looking like a winner.

[frkelly74]

There was a comment posted that has disappeared stating a mistrust of anything from people claiming to be Christian. I feel much the same way except the ones I mistrust are claiming to be from the government and here to help me. Both are worthy of concern.

[vintagesportsman]

My daughter and son-in-law have been with these folks for two years. No complaints. No issues with doctors. Paid for my grandsons birth and all expenses to date. Just good people helping good people. It is all in the book.

[Mlcompound]

I have Christian Healthcare Ministries. They paid for the birth of my daughter. We have been on it for about 3 years. They have been great and it is approved by Affordable Care Act so no penalty.

[DRNurse1]

These types of organizations are in all cultures and have been around for a long time. This one has survived 20 years so it is likely a legitimate option as long as the lawyers/ congress-critters (thanks to another member for that reference) do not make it unwieldy.

My roommate's dad (in college) had a business deal with 11 other business men. they each ponied up $1000/ month and at the beginning of the year drew names from a hat. The 12 members got the $12000 'business loan,' one each month, for the year. (this was an Oriental thing). My dad was part of a stock market club when I was growing up, with much the same process: monthly dues and split the proceeds on dissolution. The 'sand-critters' use something like this to fund their terror organizations as does the IRA in Ireland.

I like the faith base and limited administrative costs of this group. I am a bit unsure of the method for allocating the funds: a newsletter type list might get a larger than needed amount sent to some members and not enough sent to others. Sending the funds through a third party (the administrator) has the potential for abuse, both from diversion of funds and from influence as to the end recipient.

Just sayin'.