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Home » Blog » Comparison » Christian Care Ministry (Medi-Share) vs Samaritan Ministries

Christian Care Ministry (Medi-Share) vs Samaritan Ministries

Updated October 30, 2023 by Holly Patiño Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate links, which means if you enroll through my link, I’ll receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.

In this post, I am going to do a comparison of Christian Care Ministry (Medi-Share) and Samaritan Ministries.

I will go over member responsibility amounts (what member’s pay before the community shares in any medical bills), monthly costs (this is dependent on age, individual/family memberships, and the Member Responsibility amount you choose), preventative sharing, pre-existing conditions, maternity, turnaround time to pay medical bills, and any special considerations to be aware of.

Member Responsibility Amounts

Christian Care Ministry (Medi-Share) Annual Household Portion (AHP): The Annual Household Portion (AHP) is the dollar amount that a Member Household agrees to pay toward Eligible Medical Bills before any eligible bills may be shared among the Members. The AHP amount resets every 12 months on the Effective Date. Christian Care Ministry (Medi-Share) has several AHP amounts: $3000, $6000, $9000, and $12000.

Samaritan Ministries Initual Unshareable Amount (IUA): The initial unshareable amount, or IUA, is the amount that a member will pay before Samaritan Ministries shares in medical expenses. Your IUA amount will depend on which program you decide to join. For the Samaritan Basic, your IUA amount is $1,500. For the Samaritan Classic, your IUA amount is $400. If you want to change your program, there is a $100 fee to do so.

Monthly Contribution Price Range

Christian Care Ministry (Medi-Share): $81 to $1,229 

Samaritan Ministries: $135 to $555

Statement of Faith

Christian Care Ministry (Medi-Share): Must agree to their specific qualifications for a “Christian Testimony”. Not all Christian denominations will fit into these beliefs. 

Samaritan Ministries: Must agree to their Statement of Faith. Must attend church regularly (3 out of every 4 weeks). Must have your pastor or Christian church leader sign a statement confirming that you meet their requirements.

Church denominations not allowed to join Samaritan Ministries: Church of Scientology, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and Unitarianism. 

For more detailed information on faith-based requirements, please read this post about Christian HealthShare Plans.

If you prefer a HealthShare that has no religious requirements, please read my post about Non-Religious HealthShare Plans.

Preventative Sharing

Christian Care Ministry (Medi-Share): 1 routine physical (2 labs) per year. Must use the PCHS Network. 

Samaritan Ministries: Routine care (dental, vision, yearly wellness checks, colonoscopies, etc.) is generally not shared by Samaritan members. If a shareable condition is discovered because of a routine visit, those related medical expenses can be shared.

Pre-Existing Conditions

Christian Care Ministry (Medi-Share): After 3 years of membership, up to $300,000/year shareable and after 5 years of membership, up to $500,000 /year is shareable with the Health Share community. 

Samaritan Ministries: Needs that result from a condition that existed prior to membership are only shareable if the condition has been symptom, treatment, and medication-free for 12 consecutive months. Some pre-existing conditions, such as cancer, heart conditions, and hereditary diseases, have a five-year period before they are eligible for sharing.

For more detailed information, please read my post about How The Top HealthShare’s Handle Pre-Existing Conditions.

Maternity

Christian Care Ministry (Medi-Share): Members must be married in order to have maternity and newborn needs shared. Maternity medical expenses for newborns conceived outside of marriage are ineligible for sharing. Pregnancies resulting from rape reported to a law enforcement authority are the only exception. If members can show that they have an eligible maternity need, the member would need to pay their member responsibility amount. 

Sharing is limited to $125,000 for any single pregnancy event, to include antepartum care, the cost of delivery and complications to the mother and/or child(ren) and postpartum care.

Samaritan Ministries: Maternity needs are shareable in Samaritan Classic provided there are at least two family members in the same membership program prior to conception. A maternity need will be shared at 100% after the IUA has been met and has a maximum shareable amount of $250,000. 

Feel free to learn more at The Top HealthShare’s Maternity Benefits (Comparison Guide).

Turnaround Time for Paying Medical Bills

Christian Care Ministry (Medi-Share): 30 business days 

Samaritan Ministries: 60-90 days

Considerations

Christian Care Ministry (Medi-Share): There are so many programs and price points that it can become confusing on what is and isn’t shared with the community. 

Samaritan Ministries: Samaritan Classic has a $250,000 maximum limit per medical need and the Samaritan Basic has a $236,500 maximum limit per medical need. If you want additional sharing available, you can pay extra to join the  Save to Share™ program. In addition to the annual administrative share, each participating household must set aside funds that will be dedicated for use in the program. As of March 2021, the current annual household amount required to be set aside is $133 for one person, $266 for a two-person membership and single-parent family, and $399 for a three or more person family. 

Find out which HealthShare I recommend at The Best HealthShare for Individuals and Families.

Which Health Share Plan Should You Join?

Choosing a Health Share plan is a very personal decision. Feel free to check out Christian Care Ministry Reviews (Medi-Share Reviews) and Samaritan Ministries Reviews. I provide a lot more information on each Health Share and you can read reviews from other members. 

There are so many different Health Share plans to choose from, which is great, but it can also be overwhelming! To help narrow down your choices, I wrote an article on the Best Health Share Plans. You will find which health share plans I recommend to help you on your search for affordable healthcare.

Related Posts:

  • Christian Health Share
    Christian Health Share Plans
  • Health Share Reviews_Solidarity
    Solidarity HealthShare Reviews
  • Health Share Reviews_Samaritan
    Samaritan Ministries Reviews
  • Health Share Reviews_MediShare
    Christian Care Ministry Reviews (Medi-Share Reviews)

Filed Under: Comparison Tagged With: Christian Care Ministry (Medi-Share), Samaritan Ministries

Holly Patiño
Hello! My name is Holly, and I am so happy you have found my website! Before I left the workforce to become a stay-at-home mom, I spent 11 years working for an Investing Education company, later acquired by a large brokerage firm, where I specialized in Risk Management. With that experience, I have become very thorough with legal documents, which I used to comb through and really deep dive into each Health Share’s website to determine what medical bills are actually shareable with their members. I have created Health Share 101 to provide the information you need to make an educated decision for you and your family.

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