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Health insurance is expensive — but lately, it feels like the prices have completely spiraled out of control.
If you’ve ever looked at your premium and thought, “How is this even possible?”, you’re not alone.
In this post (and video), I’m breaking down why health insurance costs so much — and more importantly — what you can actually do about it.
Because most people have been told that health insurance is the only way to pay for healthcare… and I’m here to completely challenge that idea.
By the end, you’ll know about two options that can completely change how you handle healthcare — for less than half the cost of traditional insurance.
And if your experience ends up anything like mine, you’ll probably be a lot happier with your healthcare, too.
Why Health Insurance Costs Keep Rising
Health insurance was never meant to work the way it does today.
When it first started in 1929 at Baylor University Hospital in Texas, it was simply a way to help people afford hospital care — not routine doctor visits or prescriptions.
But over the years, insurance started being used for everything. Every checkup, every lab test, every minor procedure.
And once that happened, the system got buried under layers of billing, coding, authorizations, and paperwork. Doctors spend hours dealing with insurance claims instead of actually seeing patients, and many have to hire entire teams just to handle the red tape.
Meanwhile, hospitals and pharmaceutical companies continue raising their prices year after year.
According to UnitedHealthcare, “The primary reason health care is so expensive today is because providers and pharma companies have been charging higher and higher prices — a trend that’s persisted for decades.”
That’s true — but it’s not the whole story.
Hospitals set their “list prices,” called chargemaster rates, extremely high. They do this because insurance companies negotiate network discounts, and those discounts only look good if the starting price is inflated.
So the hospital raises the sticker price, the insurer negotiates a discount, and both sides get to say they’re helping — but patients are the ones left paying more.
Here’s a quick example:
There’s a viral video online of a man calling his insurance company about an ambulance bill. The original self-pay bill was $600.
Once the hospital ran it through insurance, the bill jumped to over $2,300. After “insurance adjustments,” he still owed $1,200 — double the real cost.
He literally paid more because he had insurance.
That story perfectly sums up the system we’re all stuck in — one where everyone seems to profit except the patient.
So while you’re paying hundreds (or thousands) each month in premiums, you’re not necessarily getting more value.
You’re just feeding the same cycle that keeps costs high.
But here’s the good news:
You don’t have to keep pouring your money into that system.
There’s a smarter, simpler way to handle your healthcare — one that puts you and your family first.
For Everyday Healthcare Needs: Direct Primary Care (DPC)
Let’s start with how to handle about 80–90% of your family’s healthcare needs.
Things like wellness visits, sick visits, minor injuries, lab work, and prescription management — all of that can be handled by a Direct Primary Care (DPC) doctor.
A DPC is your local doctor — but they operate differently.
They don’t deal with insurance.
Instead, you pay them directly through a small monthly membership fee.
Think of it like Netflix for your doctor — or a much more affordable version of concierge medicine.
Because you’re paying your doctor directly, there’s no insurance company standing in the way.
That means:
- Longer appointments (30–60 minutes instead of 7)
- Direct communication (you can often text or call your doctor)
- Same-day or next-day appointments
- No “waiting on approvals” for basic care
Your care stays between you and your doctor. Period.
And here’s the thing — even though more people have health insurance than ever before, around 40% of adults still skip the doctor because of cost (PBS reported this a few years ago).
That means people are paying for insurance… and still afraid to go to the doctor.
I hear this all the time. I have friends — many of them moms — who admit they haven’t seen a primary care doctor in years. They’ll take their kids to every appointment, but they neglect their own health because of fear around medical costs.
That’s where Direct Primary Care changes everything.
My family here in Utah pays just over $200 a month for DPC, and that covers all four of us.
Even in higher-cost areas, it’s still far more affordable than traditional insurance — and the experience is completely different.
Your doctor actually knows you.
You can reach them when you need to.
And you don’t have to stress about hidden costs or surprise bills.
If you want to find one near you, just search “Direct Primary Care near [your city].”
Even smaller towns often have options now.
For Large and Unexpected Medical Bills: Health Shares
While your DPC handles everyday care, what about the big stuff — hospital stays, surgeries, or unexpected emergencies?
That’s where Health Shares come in.
A health share isn’t insurance.
It’s a nonprofit community of people who agree to help one another with large and unexpected medical needs.
Here’s how it works:
- Each month, you contribute a set amount to your health share.
- When a member has a major medical need, those funds are shared to help pay for eligible expenses.
- You pay your agreed-upon Member Responsibility Amount (similar to a deductible, but it’s not insurance terminology).
- You send in your itemized bill and receipt, and the health share reimburses you or pays your provider directly.
There are no network restrictions, so you can see any doctor or hospital you prefer.
And because health shares are nonprofit, there’s no incentive to deny eligible needs — and no shareholders expecting profits.
The savings can be significant.
Health share communities have been around for more than 40 years and have collectively shared billions of dollars in medical expenses.
With a health share, you’re not paying into a system designed to profit off you — you’re joining a community designed to help.
Why This Combo Works
When you combine Direct Primary Care with a Health Share, you get a complete healthcare solution — without insurance.
Your DPC handles the everyday care — checkups, labs, prescriptions, and preventive visits — while your health share steps in for the major, unexpected medical needs.
This setup gives you both peace of mind and financial freedom.
For our family, the total cost for both DPC and our health share membership is less than half of what we used to pay for traditional health insurance.
And honestly, the experience has been better in every way.
We have more control, better access to care, and a healthcare setup that finally makes sense.
What’s Next: How Does a Health Share Compare to Health Insurance?
If this resonated with you — or if you’re wondering how health shares compare directly to traditional insurance — you’ll want to watch my next video:
Click here to read or watch next: Health Share vs. Health Insurance: Which One’s Better for You?
In that one, I walk through the differences side by side so you can decide which makes the most sense for your family.
Until then, I hope this post gives you a little hope — because affordable, personalized healthcare is possible. You just have to step outside the system that’s keeping costs high.
Health shares are not insurance and do not offer insurance coverage. Membership in a health share does not guarantee the payment or reimbursement of medical expenses. Each organization operates under its own membership guidelines, which determine what expenses may be eligible for sharing. This publication is for informational purposes only and is not provided by an insurance company. For state-specific notices and full program details, please visit the respective health share’s official website.
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