My last post titled, “Did You Know that NJ Now Requires All Residents to Have Health Insurance?” gave a few exceptions to the new New Jersey mandate that requires all New Jersey residents to have health insurance. One of the exceptions to the mandate is health care cost sharing, which almost no one has ever heard of. It may be a good fit for you or maybe not, but here are some details regarding health care cost sharing to help you decide.
Examples of health care cost sharing ministries: Solidarity Healthshare (my family and I are currently members), United Refuah, and Christian Healthcare Ministries
What is health care cost sharing: This is taken from Solidarity Healthshare’s website https://www.solidarityhealthshare.org/ :
“Health care sharing ministries provide a way to pay for health care costs that is different than traditional health insurance.
As a member of a health sharing ministry, you pay a Monthly Share Amount. This monthly share is then used to pay for the health care needs of other members. When you have a health care need and if you have met your Annual Unshared Amount, other members will pay for your health care needs.
Members also agree to a common set of beliefs that help determine which medical costs the community will share towards. With Solidarity HealthShare, guidelines on the medical expenses that members share towards are primarily guided by the moral teachings of the Catholic Church. These beliefs help define what is and is not eligible for sharing.”
What is the cost: For Solidarity, the monthly cost to join ranges from $149 for a single person under 30 years of age to $449 for a family under age 65. The amount that each member is responsible for before their costs are eligible for sharing is between $500 for a single person to $1,500 for a family. Each health care cost sharing ministry encourages and supports healthy behaviors and lifestyles and encourages you to be in charge of your own health care. This is what enables the ministries to be so cost effective.
What’s covered/not covered: All three healthcare sharing ministries seem to be very transparent about what expenses they cover and do not cover. Their websites list medical expenses that are covered, which is very comprehensive. Items that are generally not covered are: pre-existing conditions may be limited, dental, vision, and other expenses that are outlined as not eligible for sharing. Each health care cost sharing ministry has difference guidelines.
Caveats: Unfortunately, the cost of your monthly membership is not tax deductible. Additionally, you want to make sure that you thoroughly review what is covered and what is not covered according your situation and needs. Also, it seems that health care cost sharing makes most sense for individuals that are not covered with health insurance by their employers, such as self-employed individuals.
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