Christian Healthcare Ministries (CHM) vs Samaritan Ministries

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In this post, I am going to do a comparison of Christian Healthcare Ministries (CHM) 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 Healthcare Ministries (CHM) Personal Responsibility Amount: Christian Healthcare Ministries has three levels of participation; Gold, Silver, and Bronze. Each level offers different levels of health cost sharing support.

The Gold Level – The Personal Responsibility Amount is $1,000 per incident.

Silver Level – The Personal Responsibility Amount is $2,500 per incident.

Bronze Level – The Personal Responsibility Amount is $5000 per incident.

Incident = An incident includes medical treatment or testing that lasts until one of the following events occur:

1. A certain medical condition is cured according to official medical records;
2. Treatment is at a routine maintenance routine; or
3. You experience 90 days without any kind of treatment for that particular condition. The medical bills incurred from the first test to the last treatment before the doctor releases you to a regular, routine maintenance regimen are considered a single incident. If 90 days pass and you receive no further treatment, any future bills you incur will be considered a separate incident.

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 Healthcare Ministries (CHM): $78 to $516 + additional costs per year and per quarter for the Brother’s Keeper if you want unlimited sharing.

Samaritan Ministries: $135 to $555

Statement of Faith

Christian Healthcare Ministries (CHM): Must agree to their specific Christian qualifications. 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 Healthcare Ministries (CHM): Will share in preventative needs as long as you pay your member responsibility first. For example, if you are in the Bronze Plan, you would need to pay for all medical bills that are less than $5,000 per incident. If you are in the Gold Plan, you would pay for medical bills that are less than $500. When you look at how much preventative services cost, most of it will not be considered shareable and part of the Member’s Personal Responsibility – especially on the Silver and Bronze plans.

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 Healthcare Ministries (CHM): 1 year waiting period for most conditions. For cancer specifically, there is a 5 year waiting period before anything relating to it can be considered shareable.

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 Healthcare Ministries (CHM): The member would need to first pay their member responsibility amount. Maternity sharing is only available on the Gold Level plan. In the Bronze Level and Silver Level plans, they will not share in any maternity expenses. 

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 Healthcare Ministries (CHM): 60 days

Samaritan Ministries: 60-90 days

Considerations

Christian Healthcare Ministries (CHM): You are capped at $125,000 per illness (this is not per year; its for the lifetime), unless you pay extra for the Brother’s Keeper program, which gives you an additional $100,000 of sharing per year you are a member until you are capped at $1 million per illness (which you don’t have until you have been a member for nine years).  If you pay for the Gold Level Membership and pay extra for the Brother’s Keeper program, then you will have unlimited sharing available to you immediately (on eligible needs).

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 Healthcare Ministries Reviews (CHM 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.