A few months ago I shared about Samaritan Ministry. We had searched so many options for health insurance. I couldn’t find $900 per month in our budgets with a $12,500 deductible. That is just insane. Plus you would still have a ton of co-pays when you visited a doctor.
My friend had told me about her experience with Samaritan Ministry and I knew I needed to check it out. It’s a Christian Share Care program and it counts as health insurance under Obamacare. Basically you are sharing in the needs of other Christians. You pay a monthly amount. We have a family of 5 – so we pay the maximum of $405 per month. It could be less depending on the size of your family. But instead of sending money to a big company each month, Samaritan Ministry send me the name and address of the person that needs money to cover their medical bills!
You only have to pay a $300 deductible per incident ! So one your bills total over $300 you can start to submit your receipts. They will be reviewed and you will start getting checks to pay these bills within 6 weeks. You can go to any doctor or hospital you pick. When I called this week to start claims for 2 ER visits and a broken wrist, the man on the phone asked if he could pray for our family.
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!
Every month, the more than 42,000 households of Samaritan Ministries share more than $10 million in medical needs directly—one household to another.
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.
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.