Each month, members of Samaritan Ministries receive a newsletter directing them to send their monthly share dues to another participating family who has verified medical bills.

Unlike insurance companies, there is no guarantee made by the ministries that its members’ hospital bills will be paid for. Participants of the Christian alternative for health insurance need to believe that God will use the body of Christ to provide for them.

“The biggest stepping stone that people have coming into Samaritan Ministries is that this is not what they are used to,” said James K. Lansberry, vice president of Samaritan Ministries, to The Christian Post. “Americans are used to pre-paid medical care through their insurance company.”

“Stepping into a faith-based option like this where they are actually the responsible person and they are actually engaged in their health care is a little nerve wrecking,” he acknowledged.

Samaritan Ministries is currently the largest Christian health care sharing organization out of three in the United States, counting nearly 15,000 families, or about 50,000 people, as members.

How it Works
Each month, members of Samaritan Ministries receive a newsletter directing them to send their monthly share dues to another participating family who has verified medical bills. The monthly dues range from $135 for singles to $320 for a two-parent family of any size, which is vastly cheaper than insurance. There is also an annual administrative fee of $170 for each membership.

Through this plan, the ministry meets $3.5 million in medical needs a month, according to Lansberry.

Read More: http://www.christianpost.com/article/20100612/christian-health-care-sharing-requires-more-than-religion/index.html