Health Insurance is expensive! It has been a while since I had a US only policy and I can’t believe the monthly costs and the deductibles! It’s not affordable at all! When our family lived in Mexico we had to have an International Health Insurance Policy. We paid about $425 a month but it also included life insurance for our family of five. We just had to live outside of the US to keep our coverage.
The plan was simple – we had a $200 wellness allowance after a year of coverage. Everything else we paid for out of pocket until we met our $1000 deductible. Oddly enough if we had our medical appoints in the US our deductible was only $500. And we had an accident clause so we could get back up to $300 if we had an accident like a broken arm, pulled muscle, etc. I was happy with the coverage and the cost.
So imagine my surprise when I started to look for plans in the US and the Bronze coverage was going to cost $859 per month and we had a $12,600 deductible for each member! Plus there is a $25 coinsurance payment. That is just crazy! That’s $10,300 for a year of Health Insurance payments plus anything else you have to pay out of pocket before you meet your deductible.
There was no way this was going to be possible. We need to have health insurance but I would need a second job to be able to afford my insurance.
The Decision For Our Family…
Trust me I did a ton of research! There is a lot to understand and figure out. You don’t want to actually have to use that health insurance plan to find out it stinks! So we found Samaritan Ministry. It’s not your traditional insurance policy. It’s a share care program.
Every month, the more than 42,000 households of Samaritan Ministries share more than $10 million in medical needs directly—one household to another. They also pray for one another and send notes of encouragement. The monthly share for a family of any size has never exceeded $405, and is even less for singles, couples, and single-parent families.
So every month you get your reminder to send in your check for the amount your family pays. We are a family of 5 so we pay just $405 per month. You can see the costs below based on your family situation.
The monthly share is reduced when one or both of the heads of household are age 25 or younger.
You will be covered up to $250,000 for your medical needs. If you would like to have unlimited coverage you can add on Save to Share™. When a Save to Share™ participant has a need that exceeds the $250,000 maximum publishable amount of a regular need, the other Save to Share™ participants will be asked to share from their set-aside funds for the amount over $250,000. This is money you set aside to have available if necessary – if it is not needed, you don’t need to pay this extra amount.
Basically this is a very simple medical plan. You pay every month. If you need to visit the doctor you tell them you are a cash patient. The doctors usually give you a better rate when you pay with cash because they don’t have to deal with the insurance companies. Routine checkups and preventative care are considered items that can be included in your budget and are not shared.
You can submit your medical needs once you spend over $300 to be reimbursed. For example, if I have a spot on my skin and go to the dermatologist, this is the beginning of these medical bills. You may have to have something removed and sent to a lab. If these expenses are over $300 (total) you will get reimbursed. Anything that is related to that spot is still considered part of the same issue so it still gets included into that total.
This program has a great maternity option. Once you pay the first $300 towards your prenatal care – the rest of your prenatal care can be covered!
Some doctors have worked with people that have Samaritans Ministry (or other Share Care options) so they understand how it works.
You will find a ton of answers in their FAQ section. And please leave me any questions you may have and I can try to help.
**Please note – if you decide to become a member of Samaritan Ministries can you please add my name (Janell Poulette) and the person who referred you. I would recommend this as a great option if a traditional medical insurance policy doesn’t fit in your budget. Health care sharing is even recognized in the federal Affordable Care Act.