Quiet.
It's grounding
outside Leavenworth in central Washington. It's just
home. Bethany Stahl
has more appreciation for the simple things
and more gratitude for life. It was 2018.
When I got diagnosed with my tumor, I felt really betrayed by my own body.
Bethany had another problem.
She couldn't afford health insurance and her
treatment might require a lifetime of medication
at the time, she was only 26 years old when they told me I had a tumor. It was
really, I was angry.
I was really angry.
There was some relief when she searched online and
found a health care plan called Ones Share.
When you make a monthly payment,
your contribution is pooled together with other ones share members.
She signed up for just over $200 per month.
How did $200 compare to any other anything else that was out there?
Oh God, it was amazing. I believed everything was covered and that was
right around $40,000. And I still thought that I was covered,
Dunphy
from sa
thought he had insurance through the trucking company he worked for.
But after a stroke landed him in the hospital and his medical bills were unpaid.
He contacted his one share representative to find out why
he said if he reads your policy,
you'll find out
that we're not an insurance company
that we are Christian Service. They're called health care sharing ministries.
When the Affordable Care Act Obamacare ushered in new regulations for insurance.
Republicans and religious organizations pushed for a special category.
These religious based health care plans are exempt from insurance regulations.
Not all health care sharing ministries are bad. But buyer beware
every single time I got back a big
invoice or a big, you know, list of things.
And it said patients responsibility and it was 100% of the bill.
It's all, it's all on you, right?
100%. She says not one of her medical bills was paid
same for De Dunphy big hospital bills.
But he said,
what we will do is the congregation will get together
one day and we will pray for your health.
And he said that's what you're paying for.
I had no way to pay $40,000
and there's
and prayer wasn't gonna get it for me.
Prayers instead of payments aren't enough for many of the 194 people who filed
complaints against health care sharing ministries in
Washington State in the last three years.
They want us to go after the health care sharing ministry for them to pay their claim.
That's out of our purview. Deputy insurance commissioner Michael Marchand
says there's little his office can do because
of the federal laws protecting health care sharing ministries
that's like get out of jail free card that
gives them this carte blanche to not pay anything.
State regulators, caution health plans like one share are not insurance.
Insurance companies are required to keep a pile of money in reserve so they can pay
but not health sharing. Ministries,
insurance companies guarantee to pay legitimate claims but not health sharing.
Ministries,
essential benefits like mental health or substance abuse treatment covering
pre existing conditions and caps on out of pocket expenses.
Those are not requirements and many health
care sharing ministries don't cover those things.
I would say they're manipulating you
don't do it.
After nearly 50 complaints,
the insurance commissioner fined one share $150,000 and
it agreed to stop enrollments in Washington State.
But that enforcement used against eight health care sharing ministries is rare
and only happens when they deceptively market their product as insurance.
However, for clients like these,
the insurance commissioner has no authority to force one share to pay their claims.
They don't have no regulations or anything and do whatever they want.
Texas based one share declined. An on camera interview.
A company lawyer said the risk of protracted and costly litigation
force the company to settle
even though Washington's claim that it's not a legitimate
health sharing ministry is legally and factually incorrect.
I would caution against anyone signing up for a health care sharing ministry.
It's much higher risk with a lot less reward at the end of the day.
Come
here
and that's something you don't want to find out only after you are sick,
boy.
Thank
you.
Here's the recommendation from the insurance commissioner.
Then they say they say you should check with their
office before you enroll with the health care sharing ministry.
You can text the keyword care to 2064484545 and we'll send you the details.
You need to know to check this out before you sign up.
The big question. I know everybody at home is asking is why, why would people sign up
something like this? What is the draw? A few reasons?
I mean, first of all, they're less expensive. Also religious reasons.
People might not want an insurance company that covers abortions for instance,
or political.
They don't want to sign up for Obamacare. This is another option instead of that.
But even though Washington and a few other states
have sanctioned some of these health care sharing ministries,
they're still going strong in other states
including one share.
It just boggles the mind quite honestly.
Like you said, buyer, beware, buyer beware. Yep. Thank you.