10 Best Medical Cost Sharing Programs in the USA; Their Plan, Benefits, And How to Apply. Medical cost-sharing ministries are organizations in the United States of America where medical bills are shared among members. Membership in these organizations is based on criteria such are ethnicity, religious beliefs, etc. they have certain conditions by which they use to screen potential members.
These organizations do not allow the abuse of legal drugs or the use of illegal and hard drugs, they also don’t allow excessive use of alcohol as well as smoking of tobacco or use of tobacco products. Below is a list of the best medical sharing programs in the US.
10 Best Medical Cost Sharing Programs
1. Medi-Share
Medi-Share is one of the most popular medical cost-sharing ministries. It was established by Christian Care Ministry and is based in Melbourne, Florida. Medi-Share is designed to accommodate homes regardless of the budget. Unlike some others, the organization helps to negotiate health expenses on behalf of the members.
Medi-Share bases its payment on household size, age, and choice of program. They have seven AHP options which include: $1,000 (available only to unmarried members of age range 18-29), $1,750, $3,000, $4,250, $5,500, $8,000, and $10,500. A provider fee of $35 is paid by members at each office or hospital visit. Emergency room visits cost about $135-$200 and these fees don’t count toward the AHP.
Members pay a provider fee at each office or hospital visit and for emergency room visits.
Features:
- Disability Sharing
- Pre-existing medical conditions
- Senior Assist
- Discounts for laboratory test
- Tax-deductible
- Free Telehealth
- Medi-Share Groups
2. Samaritan Ministries
Samaritan Ministries was established on 1st October 1994 and has ever since then, provided medical bill sharing for over 75,000 families. The organization is available in all 50 states of the USA.
Samaritan Ministries has two plans; the Samaritan Basic plan and the Samaritan Classic plan and the monthly sharing cost can vary based on factors like age, marital status, and the number of dependents.
Below is the expense breakdown for a married couple, 40 years old and just one dependent.
Samaritan Basic / Samaritan Classic Plans
- Monthly share: $227/$555. This is the amount of money you will pay directly to other members of the program each month. Amount paid varies with the plan, age of member, and size of the household.
- Initial Unshareable: Medical health sharing will only start once there is a health need that exceeds these two threshold amounts – $1,500/$300.
- Sharing Percentage: when once you’ve been deemed eligible for your sharing amount, a sharing 90%/100% ensues.
- Maternity Limit: the maximum amount of money that can be shared for any maternity need is $5,000/$250,000. A pregnant member or couple planning to have kids will have to choose the classic plan.
- Maximum Shareable Amount: the maximum amount of money that is shareable for each need is 236,500/$250,000.
Signing up for either of the plans will cost a non-refundable one-time fee of $200. Payments will be sent to the office during the first two months of membership, after which they will be sent directly to members in need. To apply for this program, visit the Samaritan Ministries website.
3. Christian Healthcare Ministries
Christian Healthcare Ministries (CHM) is a nonprofit medical cost-sharing ministry available in all 50 states in the US. They have three main plans namely: gold, silver, and bronze. Their plans are quite affordable but they have a $125,000 sharing limit. Signing up for CHM’s Brother’s Keeper program will afford you a higher sharing limit of $225,000 which comes with an annual fee of $40 per family.
Gold Program
Gold program costs $172 per person, per month and has the most extensive health financial support offered by CHM. The program covers 100% of medical bills for incidents costing over $500. You also get unlimited financial assistance through their Brother’s Keeper program.
Silver Program
Silver Program costs $118 per person, per month. This plan will first allow you to take responsibility for incidence costing about $2,500 before CHM begins to contribute. After meeting the $2,500 criteria, you can then receive financial support of up to $125,000 per illness.
Bronze Program
Bronze Program costs $78 per person, per month. This plan will first allow you to take responsibility for incidence costing about $5,000 before CHM begins to contribute. After meeting the $5,000 criteria, you can then receive financial support of up to $125,000 per illness.
To be approved as a CHM member, you must meet the following criteria:
- Must be a Christian who’s following biblical principles such as abstinence from tobacco and illegal drug use.
- Must also adhere to biblical teaching on alcohol use, as well as regular attendance of group worship if health permits.
To apply for this program, visit the Christian Healthcare Ministries website.
4. Liberty HealthShare
Liberty HealthShare was established in 2012 and has been providing health cost-sharing services to date. The organization has three plans namely: Liberty Complete, Liberty Plus, and Liberty Share.
Liberty Complete
With the ‘Liberty Complete’ plan, you can share a medical bill of up to $1,000,000 per incident. The amount payable depends on age, marital status, number of dependents, etc. but generally, a subscriber to this plan will pay anywhere between $249 and $529 on a monthly basis. The annual unshared amount varies between $1,000 and $2,250 per month.
Liberty Plus
With the ‘Liberty Plus’ plan, you can share a medical bill of up to $125,000 per incident. The amount payable depends on age, marital status, number of dependents, etc. but generally, a subscriber to this plan will pay anywhere between $224 and $504 on a monthly basis. The annual unshared amount varies between $1,000 and $2,250 per month.
Liberty Share
With ‘Liberty share plan, you can share 70% of eligible medical bills up to $125,000 per incident. The amount payable depends on age, marital status, number of dependents, etc. but generally, a subscriber to this plan will pay anywhere between $199 and $479 on a monthly basis. The annual unshared amount varies between $1,000 and $2,250 per month.
Features
Liberty HealthShare members get SavNet discounts on dental, vision, hearing, pharmacy, and chiropractic costs. Submitting a claim with the organization is pretty easy. Also, their rates are affordable and also deductible.
To apply for this program, visit the Liberty HealthShare website.
5. Sedera
Sedera is an affordable, transparent and straightforward medical cost-sharing program. It is available in almost all American states except Alaska, Washington state, and Vermont. Sedera has five membership plans which are based on age and number of family members.
Below is a breakdown of their plans. In Sedera, the Initial Unshareable Amount (IUA) is the amount of money you have to pay personally from your own pocket each year before costs are then shared with the company.
$500 IUA
- Member only: $169 to $467 per month
- Member & spouse: $327 to $922
- Member & Kid(s): $322 to $887
- Member & family: $485 to $1,349
$1,000 IUA
- Member only: $162 to $417
- Member & spouse: $314 to $824
- Member & Kid(s): $309 to $793
- Member & family: $467 to $1,205
$1,500 IUA
- Member only: $147 to $394
- Member & spouse: $284 to $778
- Member & Kid(s): $280 to $750
- Member & family: $422 to $1,138
$2,500 IUA
- Member only: $131 to $359
- Member & spouse: $253 to $707
- Member & Kid(s): $251 to $682
- Member & family: $377 to $1,035
$5,000 IUA
- Member only: $99 to $286
- Member & spouse: $189 to $561
- Member & Kid(s): $190 to $543
- Member & family: $285 to $823
To apply for this program, visit the Sedera website.
6. Solidarity HealthShare
Unlike other healthcare sharing ministries, Solidarity HealthShare does not hold to biblical statements of faith. In order to qualify for membership, you have to comply with the lifestyle requirements stated by them. Wellness visits, ambulance, emergency room, hospital/surgical visits, mental health care, fertility / NFP, maternity care, and hospice/home health care are the shareable medical expenses offered by Solidarity HealthShare.
The organization has a self-pay system and the annual shareable amount one is responsible for varies. The annual shared amount for Individuals is $500; that of Couples is $1000 while families have an annual shared amount of $1500
To apply for this program, visit the Solidarity HealthShare website.
7. Aliera Healthcare
Aliera is open to people of all religious groups. The organization allows you to choose a member shared responsibility amount of either $5000, $7500, or $10,000. They have 3 plans from which you can choose from.
The AlieraCare value plan which is for those looking for preventive services starts at $173. AlieraCare Plus is designed for families that need a primary care doctor and it starts at $212. AlieraCare Premium offers a plethora of features which includes specialty care, urgent care, ambulance, x-rays, labs and diagnostics, hospitalization services, etc. it starts at $251 a month.
8. Altrua HealthShare
With Altrua HealthShare, you do not need a pastor from a local church to sign an acknowledgment that verifies your membership in a particular church.
Altrua allows their members 6 Office or Urgent Care visits each year, and they also provide members with unlimited telemedicine, counseling Services, maternity sharing, phcs multiplan network, lifetime maximum limit ranging from $1,000,000 to $2,000,000, and discounts on Dental, Vision, and Hearing.
Altrua has 4 membership plans namely: copper plan, bronze plan, silver plan, and gold plan. Their Copper plan is the cheapest and starts at $100 a month. The bronze plan is priced at $135 per month. The silver plan costs $242 per month while the Gold plan is priced at $269 per month.
9. Mpowering Benefits
Mpowering Benefits allows members to choose any health provider they want. The organization accepts members with pre-existing conditions without requiring any statement of faith. They provide mental health counseling and their contribution amount ranges from $200 to $490.
To apply for this program, visit the Mpowering Benefits website.
10. United Refuah Healthshare
United Refuah Healthshare is the first Jewish Health Sharing Organization, founded so as to provide affordable reimbursement options in line with Torah values. Embers become eligible for cost-sharing in pre-existing conditions after 1 year of membership, with a share cap of $25,000 in the second and third years.
They are strict with the Statement of Faith and members must attend church regularly. Their contribution amount ranges from $200 to $520.
To apply for this program, visit the United Refuah Healthshare website.