Zeal For Truth

If you have a job, thank the Lord. If you have a job that provides health insurance, thank the Lord twice. Not everyone is so fortunate. An estimated 45 million people in the United States are without health insurance of any kind, and many more are underinsured.

As an alternative to traditional health insurance, some otherwise uninsured Christians are turning to medical sharing societies. Such groups offer benefits similar to health insurance, but they rely on a type of voluntary giving to meet the medical needs of others in the group, along with an agreement to live according to healthy Biblical principles.

There are several different programs and, although each is structured somewhat differently, they are generally organized along similar lines. Some examples:

• Medi-Share
• Christian Healthcare Ministries
• Samaritan Ministries

Picky, Picky
Not just anyone can join one of these plans, and that is part of what makes them cost effective. It is well-documented that a “Christian lifestyle” is a healthier lifestyle, so that means the medical bills will be fewer. Typically a member of one of these plans must agree to:

• sign a statement of faith
• agree to live by biblical principles
• abstain from the use of tobacco and the illegal use of drugs
• follow biblical teaching on the use of alcohol
• attend church regularly

I belong to a large Christian organization which provided health coverage in a form similar to this for many years in a self-funded pool of funds to pay for the medical bills of our group. It was open only to members of the group and their minor children. Recently, they put that system aside and moved to a traditional health insurance, but one that specialized in overseas coverage.

More study would be required to know if medical sharing plans are adequate coverage for the price they cost, but I like the idea of paying some kind of smaller health insurance premium in exchange for a healthy lifestyle.