Medi-Share Complaints

The Most Common MediShare Complaints

1/15/2019

I want people to see this site and come to it when they're considering joining a Christian healthcare sharing ministry. I want everyone to see how huge a blessing Medi-Share has been to us and so many families like us -- thousands of dollars in yearly savings, exceptional support, and true compassion.

One thing I do as part of this mission is try to understand any possible concerns or problems people have when it comes to Medi-Share. Potential new members will often search to learn about any complaints, which is the smart thing to do -- before trusting your family's health, you need to do your due diligence!

First, let's begin with the Better Business Bureau.

Medi-Share's BBB Status

Medi-Share has an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau as of 2020. After 26 years of consistently getting its members' medical bills paid, with hundreds of thousands of current members, there are only 14 complaints currently on file with the BBB. For comparison, Esurance has over 300 complaints in the past three years alone with an A- rating, and Aetna has almost 600 complaints.

MediShare BBB Reviews from Better Business Bureau

So when it comes to the BBB, Medi-Share has the highest possible rating and very few complaints relative to the number of members they have.

Medi-Share Health Insurance Complaints

On Google, it appears that some people are searching specifically for health insurance complaints. It is important to keep in mind that while Medi-Share acts very similarly to insurance in most ways, there are important differences between health insurance and Medi-Share.

Every member of Medi-Share that I personally know has loved their experience, but with that said, here are the three most common complaints I've seen online along with my responses to them.

Medi-Share Didn't Accept Me

If you look at the Medi-Share BBB complaints, this is the top one -- someone completed the application and wasn't accepted into Medi-Share. (They wanted their $50 application fee refunded as well, which Medi-Share replied promptly saying that they had done.) This is one of the differences between Medi-Share and insurance. Typically the way insurance works is that the questions they ask when you join are just to set the price. They don't care if you smoke, for example, so long as you're willing to pay more.

To become accepted as a Medi-Share member, you must meet certain standards such as living a Christian way of life. You will be asked about this on the application including your denomination and whether you do drugs or have other non-Christian habits. If you do, it's not a matter of price -- they simply won't accept you.

Medi-Share Requires In-Network Treatment from Doctors and Hospitals

While you can actually use any doctor, hospital, lab, or treatment facility you'd like as a Medi-Share member, what's true is that the ones that are in-network will be at by far the lowest cost with the largest negotiated discounts. Keep in mind that Medi-Share's PHCS network of doctors is tremendous. We have always had a very easy time finding in-network doctors or specialists.

So if you want to pay the minimum, just use the easy search feature to find the closest in-network doctors and specialists.

Medi-Share Didn't Pay My Bill

Members of Medi-Share vote on what expenses are eligible for sharing. Some expenses are eligible that normally wouldn't be with traditional insurance. See my family's cranial band story here for an example. Other expenses work the other way. For example, prescription drugs and chiropractors are examples of expenses that can be eligible for sharing but with limitations.

Remember you can always Google or look at the guidelines to find if a particular type of expense is eligible for sharing. If you're ever not sure, give Medi-Share a call or do the online chat option, and you'll usually be talking with a representative in a few minutes or less.

As Dave Ramsey has pointed out, Medi-Share has the longest and most consistent track record of paying member bills of all the Christian healthcare sharing ministries. So long as it's a normal medical expense eligible for sharing, your bill will absolutely get paid.

Info Packet and Next Steps

As always, let me know if you have any questions or comments, I am always happy to hear from my readers. If you're ready to take the next step, click here to request your free info packet directly from Medi-Share, providing many more details and telling you exactly how much you would pay each month as a member.

106 Comments

Bob

7/23/2019 09:00:16 pm

It is true that the BBB shows an "A+" rating, but that is a bit misleading. Go to the BBB website and you will see this: "Customer reviews are not used in the calculation of BBB Rating". So, since Medishare is not a member of BBB the "customer reviews" are not taken into consideration for the rating. Read the actual current (as of July 23, 2019) "customer reviews" to get an accurate idea of the problems with Medishare. If the BBB rating was based on the problems and reviews on the BBB website the rating would actually be much lower - if not a "F-". And, yes, we are experiencing our own problems with Medishare, which I may share here in the near future. >:\

Michael Glenn Angle

11/14/2019 09:21:34 am

Hi Bob
I am very interested in hearing you reasons as to what problems you might be experiencing with Medishare. I am actively looking into insurence to get away from the high costs and since I am thinking I might retire then I need insurance, especially since my wife is 3 1/2 years younger and won't be 65 when I turn 65 in a year and a moth from now. Thanks

Colin Keeler link

12/19/2019 01:12:29 pm

Thanks for providing this info about how BBB ratings work Bob, that is very useful.

DeLana

5/17/2021 01:02:41 pm

I would never recommend them for coverage. In our experience over the pat five years we pay and they pay for nothing.
I recently found out I’m a diabetic and they don’t even pay for Insluin.
Currently we had to pay $9000.00 up front for my husband to use the surgery center and get reimbursed from Medishare.
They do t even look at the reimbursement for 160 business days then they start reviewing. It’s been a nightmare and will probably take 8-9 mo the total to get anything from them.
Zero communication I have had to call on anything regarding this issue.

Craig

9/15/2021 11:55:13 am

I would NEVER recommend them either. It was a huge mistake to sign up with them. It's now September and I'm still dealing with medical billing from January. It might be OK for in-network providers, but it seems like they punish us with ridiculous timelines and paperwork requirements for using out of network providers. MediShare demands certain forms and my providers refuse to provide their billing on those forms. So, MediShare sits on the submissions for at least 160 days. (They even admit it in writing now). If that is Christian behavior, I can't find it in my bible.

Scott

3/22/2023 12:05:52 pm

I have tried them twice. Second time i needed coverage quickly so i chose them again thinking I would switch another insurance as soon as possible. Shame on me! I WOULD NOT recommend them for coverage. Both times very disappointed. They would not repay me for reimbursement claiming I had not met my $3000 deductible yet and that was the first month I had them. Agent told me you have to meet your reimbursement first before they 'share'. My daughter had a UTI and they started out not wanting to pay the bill. I only assumed they thought she was promiscuous.If you are considering using them read the fine print! They talk a lot of goobly gook. And working with them is a nightmare. If you don't believe me call their 800 number and see how long you are on the phone listening to their prompts.

James

4/13/2022 01:20:30 pm

These people are misleading people and trying to exploit their faith in the Bible. I contacted them for my family health insurance after hearing their advertisement and when contacted they said I am not eligible as I have previous history of BP and Sugar!!! Then what for they are standing.

Michael

3/22/2023 12:14:15 pm

Totally agree James and Craig. I said as much to the agent. Their adds claiming to be faith based is very misleading. Terrible service to add. I told agent after she refused my reimbursement request that I don't know how they sleep at night being so called Christians. I ran the numbers from my old insurance company and i really wasn't saving much money with them but at least with old company I didn't have half the headaches and wait times.

Matt

11/1/2019 05:14:38 pm

I have been researching Medi-share for the better part of 6 hours. I have decided not to purchase based on overwhelming poor reviews. It seems to me that if a med sharing company was truly reasonably priced and had the good reputation of "sharing" i.e paying expense the vast majority of Americans would flock to the company. Moreover, if these plans were truly Christian based their reputation would reflect it.

Michael Glenn Angle

11/14/2019 09:24:05 am

Hi Matt
I am very interested in hearing you reasons as to wh you did not go with with Medishare. I am actively looking into insurence to get away from the high costs and since I am thinking I might retire then I need insurance, especially since my wife is 3 1/2 years younger and won't be 65 when I turn 65 in a year and a moth from now. Thanks

Colin Keeler link

12/19/2019 01:13:58 pm

Matt, believe me that it's true and that is why Medi-Share has grown at such a rapid rate recently. I'm sorry you decided not to join, but if you change your mind I'm sure Medi-Share would love to have you as a member in the future.

kayla

9/1/2021 05:36:35 pm

which did you decide to go with? or did you skip health share and stick with conventional insurance?

Connie Hargis

4/28/2022 05:48:56 am

They gave us a quote of $424.00 when we got the bill it was way more. We are going to start looking can't afford over $500 a month just for my husband's coverage.

Shawn

8/29/2022 08:31:47 am

Appreciate the heads up. I was very skeptical myself

John

9/19/2022 06:11:17 am

Well said Matt. I had a bill that Medishare did not pay the full amount after I had paid my portion and they committed to me on a 3 way conversation with the providor to resolve it. It got turned over to collections without me realizing it was never paid. I ended up paying it to get it off my credit report. Medishare told me they could not do anything about it because it was over two years old. They are the ones that stretched it out for two years. Now I have another expense from my procedure that I have been sent a notice showing it is past due. Medishare rep told me they can't discuss it with me because it is large enough that a third party handles it for them. My monthly "share amount" doesn't go to a third party. They should be trying to help me resolve it. I paid my portion and my monthly share but can not get help with unresolved outstanding amounts from the providers. My experience has been very negative.

Laura A Hinton

8/20/2023 12:38:36 pm

Wow I'm so glad I read this. I was moments away from joining medishare today. We've been priced out of Christian Healthcare ministries due to the increasing costs and decreases benefits so I considered switching to medishare but not any more after reading the reviews. Sounds terrible

Joey Scott

1/2/2020 07:38:20 am

I am sad to report that my Daughter and Son-In-Law have recently had a very bad experience with MediShare. They are a young couple and both working in a small church. As a Small Church Children's Director, they live on a meager salary and opted for MediShare to save money. At 25 and 26 years old they struggle with many expenses. They are a true picture of those leading children and parents to the feet of Jesus. However, this fall my Son-in-law had a devastating bout with Kidney Stones. After emergency room and outpatient surgery, Medishare refused to pay anything....not a cent of sharing....claiming that it was a pre-existing condition. How do you do that with Kidney Stones??? I am saddened because on Dec 23, they received a letter from thier appeal stating that they were refused, so now they have the burden of paying $ 18,000 ! What a great Christmas present for a young couple that the Christian Sharing was not for them and they will be strapped with this debt for years to come. Surely Medishare can pay some portion of this bill. I hate it because they unselfishly give their lives, only to be devasted by this organization that so many others have praised.

James Riley

1/8/2020 04:03:23 pm

Very sad. You're right, Medi-share should pay some of the bill.

I was considering them, but have read too many horror stories about this type of 'Christian organization.'

Colin Keeler

5/25/2020 01:56:32 pm

I'm very sorry to hear that Joey. I hope that your son-in-law is healthy and recovering.

Kidney stones can be a pre-existing condition if they occur regularly. There is some discussion of this in their blog entry on pre-existing conditions.

Jackie Noel Saemrow

2/15/2021 12:18:41 pm

We had a very simular experience with Medishare. My 17 year old daughter had a thyroid glossal duct cyst and needed emergency surgery. I called medishare to let them know and ask if I needed anything done before hand. I got the answer that everything is covered . Well they did not cover a cent. $28000.00 we were responsible for. Not Happy

Linda S Stearns

2/23/2021 10:50:23 am

I have experienced the same thing with Medi-share. Everything is "A PRE-EXISTING CONDITION"! Aging would be one of them. They will come up with any reason not to cover a claim. Definitely read the fine print many times over.

Ronald Benoit

11/24/2021 03:23:58 pm

Unfortunately, these 'Christian' health care programs are really scams and they are, for sure, too good to be true. My wife was with Liberty Health Care and they were nothing more than scammers who delayed reviews for ever, and rarely paid any large claims.

Michele

7/16/2022 02:10:01 pm

I am so sorry you had such a bad experience. I'm so thankful Samaritan Ministries had been everything they say they are and prompt about "reimbursements"
My husband and I have been using Samaritan Ministries for about 5 or 6 years and had very good treatment.
My husband has had heart problems-- even before Samaritan- and it was shared. He has had approx $200,000 in full.The doctor needed to fill out a brief form about whether it was a place in his heart that had been already treated. It was not the same place.
They shared medical bills for 3 separate heart attacks over time, and each time we received our shares over the next three months covering every penny.
No reviews on Samaritan's part, no struggles with hospital. We ask for the self pay amt and an itemized statement reflecting the discount and what we owe. I submit that to Samaritan and within 3 months all the money was sent to us by other members- not once receiving a bad check. It blew me away!
I love making my own choices for medical care and not have to go through a ppo or winder if a. procedure will be approved. .
Once Samaritan approved the initial need, then we took care of our own Healthcare. I will be 65 in a few years and I don't know if I want to have Medicare. I'll be researching .

Donna

1/10/2020 09:28:03 am

We have had many challenges with Medishare's lack of communication regarding our Member Request for Reimbursements and the amazingly long processing time to be reimbursed. I have called the support line and been told "we're processing it", followed up a month later and been told that they needed more information to process the request. Sent them the information, called a month later to get the same lame answer of "it is in process" and "now that you have called, we will let the department know to process it". Was told 90 days to process and then when they need more information, the process time starts over! My Husband and I are convinced that Medishare does not want to send members money after they have met their deductibles without a fight and constant followup. It's interesting that our monthly share checks are processed quickly! The supervisor I asked to speak to after talking to a sweet employee had a very don't care attitude about the long process time when I asked if she could expedite my requests that were initially sent in August 2019 and resent in November 2019 and followed up on in Dececember 2019. I gave up this morning after talking to the Supervisor and will just wait until who knows when to get our reimbursements. I am DONE with wasting another minute of followup with them. It is pathetic how slow Medishare has been in processing our requests for reimbursement, so we are changing our membership to Samaritan's Ministries which our friends have recommended due to fast reimbursement time.

John Zouse

2/26/2020 06:25:51 pm

Thanks for this blog. We’ve been with Medishare for over 3 yrs and are very happy, but needing a 2nd back surgery has raised some questions; to which Medishare has answered quickly and thoroughly. What you’ve posted here eradicates any remaining concerns. Thanks again.

Colin Keeler

5/25/2020 01:58:43 pm

Thank you John, I greatly appreciate that!

Bill S. Pacek

3/28/2020 02:26:05 pm

Medi-share is a complete rip-off! Don’t do it.

Colin Keeler

5/25/2020 01:58:16 pm

I respectfully disagree Bill, Medi-Share has been a true blessing for our family and countless others.

Robert Wills

12/16/2021 08:32:22 am

What a weird review website this is. So many horror stories with Medi-Share and their delay tactics and their refusal to cover procedures that even the worst of insurance providers will cover, yet here comes Colin Keeler to tell these people they are wrong. Hey Colin, are you part of the Medi-Share scam? How do you profit from these people ripping off your fellow Americans?

Scott

3/22/2023 12:17:53 pm

I agree with Bill! Scam, under the guise of being a Christian company.

Richard

5/19/2020 05:31:26 am

We are current members. Medishare will look for any way not to cover your bills after you meet the deductible. We are paying an extra $4000 over our deductible because the hospital flagged a procedure as "medical history" this was a scope for an ulcer to determine whether or not to continue treatment or do surgery... Hospital said that is how they flag all follow-ups like this and wouldn't be able to change it. We appealed and were denied. Medishare refused to cover it even though it was obviously part of a treatment plan that should have been covered. We tried from both the hospital and the medishare team to get an exception made, but neither would budge on their decision. Unfortunately, our only recourse is to let the world know our story everywhere we can on social media. We are stuck holding the bag with this company and now over 14000 in medical bills.

Colin Keeler

5/25/2020 02:02:00 pm

Richard, The process for determining sharing eligibility is the same before and after you hit your annual household portion. I'm sorry to here your bills weren't eligible based on how the hospital coded them.

I certainly agree that hospital bills are outrageously high and I hope you're able to get them lowered. I would suggest contacting the hospital often to try and get a lower self-pay rate if you haven't already done this. Again, I'm sorry to hear of this and wish you the best of luck with your situation.

Robert Wills

12/16/2021 08:35:46 am

Here comes Colin Keeler on his white horse to tell Richard that his experience with Medi-Share isn't typical and that Richard needs to do more to get his provider to act. It is obvious now that Colin Keeler is part of the scam. Shame on you Colin. Your eternity in fire and horror awaits.

Michele

7/16/2022 02:33:57 pm

How incredibly aggravating to say the least, Richard. I am so sorry for all yall have been going through with Medi-share
If you haven't looked over Samaritan Ministries, I would recommend it. We have been on Samaritan for 5-6 years. We have had none of those issues. My husband has had $200,000 in bills for 3 separate heart attacks: stents and stays at the hospital. I have had 2 spinal fusion surgeries totaling about $180,000. Samaritan shared every penny and both my husband and I received all our money within 3 months of submitting the bills. One month I received $95,000 in share money and notes of prayers from people sending $400-$ 500 . That is a lot of people. I have even been seeing a chiropractor for care and getting massages weekly(covered up to 40 a year if at a medical practice). I do this as preventative care for my back. This helps my back so much!!
I hope people will look Samaritan over. You pay the provider and don't have a "middle man" so to speak. I
praise God so much for their Samaritan Ministries.

Mark Danay

5/26/2020 03:04:00 pm

MediShare is a complete scam and there is nothing about this company that is "Christian" based. First off they do tell you that they have a 3 year "pre-existing condition clause" where they will deny any and all related claims, but what they don't tell you is that it is really an up to 6 year pre-existing condition clause. There are many examples of how they claim invoices are “preventative” even though they were related to medical procedures, but let’s ...

Say in Spring of 2016 you have a torn Meniscus repaired and then say in Fall of 2019 you learn you have developed arthritis in the knees and it is determined you should have injections to help elevate the pain. You have never seen a doctor about knee pain in-between these dates and as any medical professional will tell you this is an entirely different issue than a torn Meniscus. Either way it is over 3 years 4 months since that procedure. Anyway, you call MediShare to confirm the injections are covered and they tell you yes. You want to make double sure so you request the doctor call and confirm the procedure is covered and they tell him yes. Then 4 months later you see MediShare still hasn’t paid the $23,000 claim so you call to see what is going on. They tell you the claim is under review and that they need to see all your medical records from the previous 3 years. After another month or so, you receive another letter saying that isn’t good enough they now request your medical records from the previous 5 years. When you bring up the point that they not only told you the procedure would be paid, they told the doctor the procedure would be paid, they tell you that they only gave a “soft” yes, not a “hard” no. What the ~!@#$ is that? How can anyone tell you yes and then say no after the work is done! Can you say, I’m bankrupt now? The only reason we changed from our original insurance plan to MediShare was because our income had been drastically cut and we could no longer afford traditional insurance.

In the end they say that since I had knee pain in 2016 and only joined MediShare in 2018, that this is only 2 years prior to signing up, meaning this is a pre-existing condition. The claim will be denied. So it would be 2021 before they would consider this claim? That makes this a 5 year pre-existing condition clause. When asked how they consider a torn Meniscus and arthritis related they simply say “it’s all the knee related”. When asked how they can deny a claim after telling both the doctor and myself that it would be covered, they claim that isn’t what they said. When asked to hear the original phone call that they say is being recorded when you call, they can’t produce any evidence saying it may not be covered.

Proceed at your own risk with this company, but know they will spend whatever it takes + make up whatever they need to in order not to pay a claim.

carl ursel

6/12/2020 08:59:59 am

I too have been researching medi-share and the one thing that jumped out at me right away was the $25 MONTHLY admin fee.

Doing some quick math using their reported 400,000 members
...assume the average family is 4 people
...this creates 100,000 accounts
... multiply 100,000 by $25

this is $2,500,000 per month in admin fees or $30,000,000 per year members are paying. This seems excessive. Has anyone reviewed a year end financial. statement ?

Chris

8/18/2023 06:57:32 am

The admin fee is the portion that the ministry operating expenses come out of. Like anyplace, ministry, church, or business that employs people, there is overhead.

Gary Lyons

6/12/2020 12:01:36 pm

Sorry I do not feel the same about Medi-Share after receiving an outrageous 19.3% increase in my share premium. Absolute usury. I really take offence to companies who espouse Christian values and principals but don't follow them.If they did, everyone would share the same increase percentage. I feel cheated and lied to. I am so sorry I signed up for Medi-share

Mandy

8/5/2020 04:57:32 pm

Medishare began as a great option for us and is quickly becoming very suspicious and unreliable. They are not insurance and shouldn't be treated as such, but I'm also sickened by their christian claims and some of their business practices. Telehealth has been helpful to us, but their recent price increases are outpacing our employer provided insurance price increases. More worrisome to me, they are considering very basic lab tests (with abnormal and treatable findings) as "wellness and prevention", giving them an excuse not to cover them. Their definition of wellness and prevention is not what your doctor or an insurance or your employer would define as wellness, so beware. They are also quite far reaching in terms of what they consider "pre-existing conditions". Again, buyer beware. Our recent experiences with Medishare along with my own training as a licensed medical professional have raised concerns. Having member voted guidelines is also not robust enough to allow for changes, unfortunately. We are looking elsewhere.

April

4/19/2022 10:08:18 pm

Hi Mandy, I am doing some research into sharing organizations and wondered if you would mind sharing if you found a good place to be as you said you were looking elsewhere. Thank you.

9/10/2020 08:39:23 am

Well, another wonderful (sarcasm) time disputing a bill with Medi-Share. Didn't receive the PHCS Network discount on my anesthesia bill even though the doctor and facility were in network. In all my years, this is the first time I have experienced this. In the past, when I had real insurance, if the doctor was in network, his choice of facility was included as in-network as was the anesthesiologist. Not so with Medi-Share. They say the anesthesiologist was out of network and thus no discount. Even the rep from the billing department of the provider admitted that with all the billing she has done, when the doctor is in network, the anesthesia is considered as in-network, whether or not they truly are.
I am truly sorry I ever chose Medi-Share. I thought by choosing Medi-Share, I finally found something to enable me to quit my job (with medical benefits) and retire early (59 1/2) because I had some sort of back-up medical insurance. (yes, I know they're not insurance. But they are meant to sort of substitute for one) Biggest mistake I have ever made. They are not what they espouse to be. They espouse Christian values, principles, etc falsely. They are a business performing under the guise of a Christian organization. Plain & simple. As it says in the Bible; "They will be punished most severely." Not recommended!
I guess I'll be looking for a job with benefits again.

Richard Signarino

10/22/2020 07:06:52 am

My family was considering joining Medi-Share, however, after having read the many complaints, and the nature of those complaints especially, we have decided to remain on our current insurance plan. I noted that the writer above, endorses this plan, stating that only a dozen or so complaints have been lodged with the Better Business Bureau (with an A+ Rating), as opposed to other similar plans of this type. It should be noted that there are far more many complaints that are found on various social media sites, and that many people are unfamiliar with reporting negative remarks with the BBB, customarily used among businesses. However, simply put, when using God or His Son to affect prosperity in ones venture, and assuming the posture of a God-Like organization, one must be quite careful, and strictly adhere to the principles of what Jesus taught. I know of none who were ever disappointed, burdened, or placed in economically dire straits by the Son of God, as demonstrated in the volumes of disappointed members in this health plan. Helping some, or even many, but seemingly harming others was never the Christian principles expressed and taught by Jesus Christ, He was the one that spoke of leaving the flock to simply find one lost sheep; it appears that Medi-Share has far too many such "sheep", too numerous to count. We, therefore, decline the offer.

Joyce Nisbet

10/31/2020 02:39:05 pm

I have been having a nightmare of problems with Medi-Share. I had my monthly "share" automatically taken out of my checking account. It came to my attention that one month an odd amount was taken out and when I checked on transaction. Medi-Share so generously took someone else's monthly share out of my checking account. I am astounded that my bank information was on another members name! After many phone calls and repeating my story to countless people, who kept assuring me it was all taken care of....of course....it wasn't and instead of reimbursing me the amount, they took out of my account a second time. At this time, I am going over my statements, and for a third time, IT IS WRONG. I dread the process of telling countless people the story only to promises of contacting me in 24-48 hours. I have also been charged a late fee for their own miscalculations. I'm done! As soon as they get this corrected, I leaving this business. Hiding behind a christian mission statement makes it only worse. I will warn everyone who even utters Medi-Shard.

Nancy

11/24/2020 10:02:29 am

We have endured a nightmare with Medicare - a bike accident in April resulted in a shattered elbow - we sought help at a nearby hospital - not in network we learned but in the middle of covid 19 we were seen. Long story short - over 6 months of hassle and repeatedly submitting fully coded medical bills Medicare paid less than a third of the $30,000 bill for surgery, screws, and a plate. we had to appeal multiple times for them to consider anesthesia as not elective. At almost $500 a month "share" we can not strongly enough recommend against Medicare - they are impossible to work with, they don't really care, and in the end they will fight you every inch of the way, but they will end each mail with blessings.

Patty

12/29/2020 07:44:35 am

I used Medishare while i was unemployed altough it was useless. None of the doctors i saw had never heard of it, therefore it was not excepted. Dodn"t even bother

Lori McCarter

1/4/2021 12:56:48 pm

Disappointment: I was able to get back on my husband's health insurance so I needed to drop my membership with MediShare. I called multiple times,. multiple days, in December. I was on hold once for over 2 hours!!! Finally, AFTER January 1st I contacted someone who explained I would not be receiving my January payment of over 350.00 because I hadn't called in time. I explained the situation with them, even had screen shots of my calls and the hold times... Nothing!! They are no different than any other "insurance" company by not refunding my money. If I'm in need of insurance another time, I will NOT use MediShare.

Emily

2/6/2021 11:53:30 pm

Never use Medishare! I was very attracted to the idea of a Christian community helping each other. It’s a wonderful concept, if the people running it were actually Christian. I signed up, then a year later, I got pregnant with our second child. My husband and I agreed that a home birth was best for us, and they refused to pay my midwife until services were completed. Which means they would not give her a single penny owed until after my child was delivered and the 6 week postpartum visit was done. Not a single representative could tell me that though, until 3 weeks after my child was born, so I spent hours on the phone trying to get what was owed to this wonderful woman. And the child birth? I never actually got to use the midwife because I never went into labor, I hemorrhaged and had to go to the hospital for an emergency C-Section. I almost died, and rather than getting to recover, heal, and be with my family I had to fight the Medishare people for a year to pay my bills because they said my hospital overcharged us and they “wanted to be good stewards of God’s money” by not paying my bills. $16,000 of debt with a new child, who has that kind of money?! Instead of being able to raise our daughters the way we had carefully planned we had to sell our home and start over because of their “Christian stewardship”. Stay away from them.

Gina Reno Woodlee

2/8/2021 01:27:08 pm

I just had a very bad experience with them too. I will never refer them.

Gina Reno Woodlee

2/8/2021 01:25:58 pm

I am very, very disappointed in Medi-share. I was laid off in July 2020 and reached out to Medi-Share for coverage (I know they have a whole different language here, so my apologies if I am not using the correct language). I signed my husband and I up, paid the first month and thought that I had set up autopay for our monthly share amount. We never received an email or notice saying payment was not received in October so I assumed all was well. Then a couple of weeks ago I found out we lost our coverage back in October, one month after I signed up because they had not received payment. When I called this week to have it reinstated, they said the only way was to either pay the 4 months sharing that we owed (which doesn't make sense at all...why would I pay for 4 months past when we weren't even covered?) or we could resign up and pay for the next 3 months with NO COVERAGE AT ALL. Are you kidding? I offered to pay 4 months now in advance for the next 4 months so we could have coverage NOW but they said NO. I am APPALLED that a Christian ministry would be so heartless. Very, very disappointed in them. During these hard times, you would think there would be more grace. I will never refer you to anyone.

Pol Carglovs link

3/2/2021 03:50:58 pm

Thank you for this comment section. I have been considering Medishare for the past year. Thank You! Thank you! Thank you! I am SO glad to have found this comment section. It confirms all of my suspicions that when it sounds too good to be true...it probably is. Yes I disdain insurance companies and know full well they do everything within the thin lines of legality to NOT pay on claims. But you know that upfront. This organization CLAIMS to be there for you, but what I read and hear is definitely not what a Christian would expect. This is a cold hearted bu$iness veiled in the cloak of Christ's mercy. You ( Moody Bible bankers) will need to answer for this deception.

James W

5/22/2021 05:04:18 am

We have been with medi-share since 2016 and have not had any issues. We have 6 kids, 2 pregnancies, and a number of accidents. Things can get complicated at times, but it’s been way better for our family than a traditional plan. The matters have worked out in our area and with our hospitals. We budget for extra health matters that medi-share doesnt cover.

This page makes it sound like a lot of issues, and each one sounds so terrible (I am so sorry to hear each one), but small in comparison with the number of people in the program. Hundreds of thousands seem to be happy. I have a number of friends in the program and they all seem happy. Little gripes about losing the PCP, but that’s been pretty much it.

Lisa

8/3/2021 06:20:22 pm

Are you currently able to get a hold of member services? We have been trying for days. Chat has been disabled on the membership login page and no one is responding to emails.

Craig K WINFREE

6/14/2021 02:53:34 pm

Ive been researching them for a few days to see if its something I wish to do and have noticed a recurring theme in most complaints; people do not understand the difference between a sharing co-op as it were, and an insurance company. This is hugely important to understand- they are not an insurance company so don't expect the benefits of an insurance company. Members premiums aren't being used to pay for elective surgeries and preventative care. Pre-existing conditions would bankrupt the sharing co-op, so its reasonable to expect those aren't covered otherwise everyone in the world would join it and pay the $10,000 AHP and have $2M in expenses paid. Insurance companies would go out of business because MediShare has every customer if that were the case. Yall need to stop complaining about it and understand it better. My research has found overwhelmingly that is does what it is billed to do- pardon the pun. Sure, perhaps they seek to verify that some cases are eligible and find that they aren't- but they aren't an insurance company; they are a Christian sharing co-op getting insurance as a group plan and helping millions. If you get denied a claim and feel it to be wrongly denied- get a lawyer on it. Don't just complain. One of two things will happen- you will win and others won't have to sue making it a better program for everyone- or you will find out you were wrong all along and therefore the case is resolved for you and you can pay your bill.

Steve

1/13/2023 12:21:18 pm

I'm sorry but I have to disagree with you Craig. Most of the complaints on this blog seem to be rooted from the poor customer service, slow or no payments, and deceptive practices of Medishare and not the misunderstanding between "Sharing" and "Insurance". Sure you will need to do more paperwork with a Sharing system than with an insurance company but Medishare seems to exploit this and use it too not pay claims.
I am not a Medishare subscriber, I heard an ad on the radio this morning and decided to look into it a little deeper before calling. I'm glad I did and found this blog. I will not be calling them after reading the reviews and Medishares lack of action to resolve them.

Cindy

6/18/2021 12:11:22 pm

I am a widower since January 2021 but my monthly premium went up even though my income dropped dramatically, why?

ray cacciola

7/7/2021 02:39:22 pm

it is a big scam

Dee

7/27/2021 02:13:38 pm

I have had it with Medi-Share. My daughter was on it with her husband for 10 years, straight out of college. They were young, healthy and serving Jesus. They are Christian servants in the extreme, they have been teaching in Title 1 schools and love it. They have also been trying to get pregnant. She had severe abdominal pain and fainted while teaching (!) and was taken to the ER by ambulance. (Note - an emergency should be covered according to Medi-Share) It ended up that she had an ectopic pregnancy that had to be surgically removed, and she also lost a fallopian tube because it had ruptured. Medi-Share would not pay ANYTHING. They said it was an "abortion." Also they said the hospital was 'out of network.' It was heartbreaking that they lost a pregnancy -- AND -- she lost 50% of her ovulatory capability to have a baby. This "christian" organization did not care. It was quite traumatizing. And cost them $12,000 because Medi-Share refused to cover them.

We all have switched to an HMO. We are paying LESS and we are getting real costs covered, like prescriptions. They make money somehow... but no more on my back.

Lynn Parrish

3/22/2023 07:16:11 am

Hey Dee I'm interested in getting an HMO after reading your story about Medishare. Will you please share which company you went with most that Ive checked are really expensive

Lisa

8/3/2021 06:12:49 pm

Has anyone had any luck canceling their Medishare membership? We have tried calling the number, emailing and reaching out via social media. The chat function on the member page is not working. I really just want to cancel. Our membership is set up on Auto Pay and I cannot change it. I'm reaching out to our bank tomorrow. Not sure what else to try.

Joseph

10/8/2021 04:37:35 pm

It's called a stop-payment. Any bank will stop auto drafts if you ask. Call your bank- it's your money. People cancel memberships, subscriptions, life insurance, car insurance, etc. everyday. Medi-share is not insurance. That's how they get around state & Fed regulations.

Joseph Eiswert

5/24/2022 09:03:04 am

I have had nothing but problems with Medi-Share. I called this morning to cancel my membership and was on hold for 50 minutes. Then I was told I would still need to pay my June fees to cancel. I have never had any successful reimbursement and have submitted more than $29,000 in requests that date back to March of 2021. Its a complete scam!

Kevin

8/6/2021 08:12:10 am

Medi share is the worst plan on the planet. We paid in monthly only to receive no benefit at all. Wife developed breast cancer only to be denied at every turn for help. Put us through stress that you can’t imagine. We terminated the plan, of course they can pray for you .

Joseph Eiswert

5/24/2022 09:04:27 am

My experience with Medi-Share was the same, but my illness was prostate cancer. Zero reimbursement.

M.G link

8/19/2021 10:38:29 am

Complete rip-off. We've paid over 15k to them and they've barely helped with any medical coverage. They pride themselves on being a Christian non-profit. Quite frankly they hide behind that. Complete scheme. I would NEVER reccommed them to anyone!!

Wendy

8/27/2021 06:54:39 pm

Did they tell you why they did not cover the breast cancer?

Chelsea

9/8/2021 12:47:09 pm

I have had both positive and negative experiences with Medi-Share. The negative was certainly the sticker shock of paying out of pocket for any and all preventative care. I went to my first well-women's visit after my employer switched our coverage from real insurance to Medi-Share and couldn't believe that all I received was a $3 discount on a $300+ medical bill for a doctor that was "in-network." If you don't want to pay for a low AHP, or aren't anticipating very many medical costs in the year, it is a little frustrating to pay Medi-Share for such a small discount, and then pay your providers basically the full amount billed.

My other negative experience, that I am currently still working through, is getting Medi-Share to share in a bill from the pediatrician at the hospital for my second son's birth. We moved mid-pregnancy, so I did a ton of research to make sure I selected a new doctor and hospital that were both considered in network for Medi-Share. I was lucky that all additional personnel (anesthesiologist etc.) were also in-network, except for the pediatrician. I submitted the bill to Medi-Share and they gave a 180 day (!!!) processing time. So now I am stuck making payments on the bill until Medi-Share processes it and pays the doctor, and then I will have to go back to the doctor to get a refund. Quite the run-around.

I will say that I have had a positive experience through two pregnancy and hospital births, as well as a cancer diagnosis and treatment. I kept copious personal records of all bills received and paid to compare with Medi-Shares records, because I was skeptical, and everything pretty much lined up. For both of my pregnancies, I ended up paying a bunch out of pocket up front to my doctor towards my global bill, as well as for scans and blood draws throughout, but once my global bill from my doctor and hospital bill were processed, Medi-Share did cover everything above my AHP.

At the beginning of this year, I was diagnosed with melanoma, and they did do a thorough review (can't remember if it was 3 or 5 years) of my medical records to make sure it was not pre-existing. I was concerned, since I did have some moles removed previously while being covered by Medi-Share, that they would find a way to not cover my treatment. Luckily they did, and since my second pregnancy/birth fell in the same AHP year as my cancer treatment, almost all of my bills were covered 100%. Medi-Share ended up covering $64,000+ in medical bills for me and my sons in that AHP year.

I realize after reading through these reviews, that I am lucky to have had a good and smooth experience with Medi-Share for the past several years. I will say what helped the most was the scheduled calls with the Maternity specialist. Angela was a life saver and spent so much time on the phone with me walking me through every bill and giving me step by step instructions on how to fix any issues, or preparing me for any issues that might arise.

Michael Lee

9/12/2021 10:00:55 am

We joined Medi-Share in 2017 and later when my wife broke her leg, all they wanted to do was pray for her. Every time I’d call them, which was many, they would do nothing, but asked if they could pray for us. The costs ran $35,000 and we would wound up paying about $25,000 of that, and they squealed like pigs to pay nearly a year later about $10,000. They are criminals posing as Christians.

Richard

9/29/2021 06:08:28 pm

Medi-share member for 7 years. You pay the AHP + lots of preventative care costs and overpriced medications. Hospital said they would accept medi-share. After my son's birth they said they would not provide the forms medi-share wanted to file the claim so had me pay out of pocket. I filed the claim to medi-share manually. 8 months later I get the statement of sharing and medi-share has applied their PHCS discount for 80% of the bill so only on the hook for 20%. I'm left stuck with the difference. Would have been cheaper to use my work blue cross plan and would actually have medications covered and health checks etc.. too. I'm done with their nonsense. After doing research on them and their PHCS discount found that many doctors and hospitals hate medishare because they basically set their own discount rates and when they try to complain the PHCS group basically says they won't do anything because they are not insurance. So basically they are very adept at finding loop holes to make money either our of the doctors pocket or your own. Not an ethical company.

Cheryl S link

10/6/2021 10:37:39 am

I'm leaving this message due to a very frustrating experience of a dear coworker and friend who has undergone cancer treatment while paying expensive membership dues to this company. On top of the rigors of her aggressive cancer and treatment, she has been subjected to months of jumping through hoops, hours on the phone, back and forth with doctor's offices and hospitals, being misled and neglected by Medi Share. Despite being a member for over five years and currently paying $500 monthly for membership and never asking for any type of help until she was diagnosed with caner, even though she is Diabetic and has other health issues. I won't go into all the details, except to say that she has done all that has been asked of her that she can possibly do, but because the hospital won't release certain information directly to her (citing their own regulations), Medi Share will not reimburse her. So she is out not only $6,000 yearly for her membership, but the cost of her cancer treatment as well.
As team members of a (real) ministry with the mission of sharing the Gospel, my coworkers and I are very disturbed that this organization identifies it's self as a "Christian Care Ministry". If anyone considering this company has been been led to believe that this organization is conducting business in a way that reflects true Christianity, please know that is not the case. Most of us are sincere in our convictions and would not think of representing our Lord and Savior in such a way as this company. If you are trying to navigate the dishonest insurance industry and believe this to be a trustworthy alternative, I hate to disappoint you, but keep looking. Prayers for my friend would be appreciated.

Lana Straw

10/12/2021 07:02:00 am

Colin Keeler seems to be the company apologist on this site. Is this person a Medi Share employee? Reading the reviews of truly scammed Christians makes my blood boil. This appears not to be a faith-based program in any way, shape, or manner. I wouldn't touch this organization.

Colin Keeler link

12/7/2022 06:27:49 am

Hi Lana, Please note that I'm leaving up every single comment on this blog post even though they're mostly negative and it would be easy to delete them. I'm not a paid shill and my goal here is to facilitate a free and open discussion -- even among people who have an opinion differing from my own.

Lisa Bowen

10/12/2021 12:37:56 pm

Medishare looks for every possible excuse not to cover high-cost medical needs. They play games and make it impossible to get in touch with them to start appeals if they read your medical records incorrectly. They state that you can use their online chat since their phone wait times are so extensive (you practically have to take 3 hours off of work to speak with someone and even then they will use excuses of their system being down, etc). You are unable to use their “convenient online chat” to discuss medical bill status. We are self-employed Christians who were seeking affordable health insurance. We read good reviews about Medishare and decided to join. Our family is pretty healthy. Our concern with this plan arose from our 21 year old son suffering an injury to his nose in which he perforated his nasal septum. He needed surgery to repair the hole in between his nostrils (every time he breathed in his nose whistled). I called them prior to the surgery and gave them the surgical diagnoses and CPT codes. Our surgeon and hospital were on their list of approved providers. Medishare stated that “it looks like everything should be fine but we will not know the final outcome of coverage until the surgery is complete and everything is filed.” Three months after the surgery, we received a $13,000 bill from the providers stating that Medishare denied our medical bill. I called Medishare immediately to discuss this matter. After being on hold for 30 minutes and then transferred to yet another extension with its 20 minute wait, a representative took my information and said that they would open an appeal. Medishare told me that our sons medical history records reflect a statement in his chart that he has a deviated septum as of 2020. This was incorrect and Medishare read the records wrong. Immediately following his surgery, Medishare obtained previous records from 3 of our sons providers to make sure that this perforation was not a preexisting condition. Our son had a deviated septum repaired in 2018 and his surgeon stated that at the time of surgery, his septum was straight and that this injury was in no way related to his history of the deviated septum repair. My surgeon sent notes regarding this to Medishare plus we accessed his records from the other 2 providers and in no place was it stated that our son had a deviated septum in 2020.
I called to check on the progress of the appeal, and after a 45 minute wait, I was told that their system was down that day and that they could not discuss this issue. I was also told that an appeal was not opened up and that we would have to call back. There is no option to fax or mail. You strictly have to speak with someone. I had already dedicated approximately 6 hours of my time trying to get this fixed (by the time I made phone calls to Medishare with their long wait times, calling the providers, calling the hospital, looking over all of his prior medical records, sending faxes, etc). I just stopped. They have no plans to help us at this point.
This plan is fine if you don’t need surgery or you don’t get in to an accident. You might end up with a $500,000 ICU bill if you are in a car accident because Medishare will find some loophole to deny payment. Shame on them for calling themselves Christians. They take advantage of Christians.

Jimmie chapman link

10/30/2021 01:23:54 am

Any thing that carries the name christian is under bondage with god to uphold gods principles. However warning here…any thing that requires money….beware of the many sheep in wolves clothing. If you are a member of the lords church, each member is your insurance . We are commanded to love each other as our own very self. This means when others are suffering, we are obligated from scriptures to help one another. Well this is how the church of Christ follows the teaching of Christ…to help one another. Are you a member of the church of Christ?? Warning there are 450,000 demonization in the world today. Show me scripture where god has ever allowed anyone to organize, establish their church for themselves. Doesn’t exist. Therefore god is not any part of them. They only claim to be of god,however god does not claim to be any part of them. Beware many shall in end times come proclaiming them to be christ and many will be deceived. Christ died for his church, not churches. He is all the insurance you need. Your congregation is there to help you in your time of need or they are not of god. After all isn’t the requirement for medshare is to be a Christian. So if you are a Christian in the “church of christ” you already have insurance in its members to love and care for each other

Julia

12/2/2021 12:11:30 pm

We have been with Christian Medi Share for a few years now and i am so done. They dont hardly pay anything! I have stacks of bills right now and only 17% of 1 was paid. All you females keep in mind they will not pay one penny towards a health/breast/mammo exam even if you haven't been in 3 years. They would rather have you only go when you are extremely sick, and then possibly, it may get covered by a small percentage. We pay a lot of money every month for this plan, only for it to go towards other peoples bills. The telemed is helpful i have to say, especially if you can understand the foreign language the Dr is speaking. But good luck on that. They lean towards natural holistic methods which isnt always the answer. And trying to find a provider on there "never been updated list" is rediculous to. Make sure you call because most of them do not accept this plan! I shake my head in shame to this program. I was better off with regular insurance.

Amanda

12/10/2021 01:20:28 pm

Everyone should stay far away from Medi-share! We’ve had it for several years, mainly because we made too much to join on the market place (which thankfully has changed as of June 2021). Medi-share has been nothing but a mess since we joined, will look for any excuse to not pay for anything. We now owe over $100,000 to our local hospital for 2 surgery’s they are unwilling to cover. I can’t say it loud enough, and will continue to tell every person we know how awful this scam of a company is. They have even raised the monthly rates so high that some of the market place plans are the same or lower. Do NOT sign up with Medi-share!

Jordan Savageau link

1/6/2022 09:08:08 am

I have had nothing but problems with Medi Share. I went to the emergency room and had to eat $4500 worth of bills because Alina wouldn't send the UB4 form and Medi share kept asking for more information until they said it didn't meet their timely response guidelines. I would think they had everything they needed and would be sending a check, but no I would have to call to find out that they needed something else. They never reached out to say we need this or that they just didn't send the check. Do not do it!

Gin

1/12/2022 11:51:47 am

My daughter is having a terrible time with medi share. She gave birth 2 months premature to a baby in July. Medi share has given her the run around. She has an email from them that says she will owe 30,000.00. They are now telling her she will owe over 600,000.00 for the nicu bill. When she calls she can only get voice mails. It is so frustrating to see her go thru this.

Bob McClanahan

1/22/2022 04:49:15 am

This started out as a great alternative to insurance until we actually had to use it. I had an emergency hospitalization, and the closest hospital was a community hospital that uses many out of network providers. Because of the situation I had to use the out of network providers. Many of them refuse to deal with Medishare, so I was left having to pay the remainder of the bill. It has been a lot of frustration dealing with Medi-Share. Every call with them tests your patience. Two hours on hold is not uncommon. I was lied to on multiple occasions. This organization claims to be Christian but their actions are not. They look for excuses not to pay bills. I do not recommend them !

NJM

1/31/2022 07:31:24 pm

This is not insurance & therefore not approved or regulated by any state insurance commissioner, who otherwise could assist in enforcing coverage. This is just a wish & a prayer. Are you willing to risk it? As goes your health, goes your wealth.

Ron Benham

2/3/2022 07:23:53 pm

Medi-Share is a scam! They use delaying tactics such as they might pay 15% of a submitted claim and then you are tasked with following up to submit the remaining 85%. Then they pay another small percentage and again, you are tasked with following up and submitting the remainder of the claim only to repeat this same process again and again. Each time, this process takes several weeks or months to process on their end. This is all done by design and they hope to win through attrition and by exhausting your will to continue turning in the remainder of unpaid claims! I even had one of their supervisors, upon my complaining of just that, ask me why don’t I just pay it myself then!!! wtf? Stay away from these manipulating, wanna be medical insurance providers!!!

Sue

2/10/2022 07:13:05 am

I believe this is a huge scam andthey are using God as a blanket. I have noticed there is no folllow up or follow through. You cannot complain on the website either about mistreatment of some of the ppl. I am highly disappointed withthis scam. I am going to Golden Rule UHC. At least I will know how to deal withthem and they are under regulations. DO NOT do the Medi-Share can I pray for you route. not cool.

Merrie Webster

2/16/2022 02:21:19 pm

I lost my job in September of 2020. I could not afford the $800+ cost of COBRA and was excited to find a Christian Company, Medishare. My husband only gets $900 in Social security. I signed up in October 2020. Medishare has NOT been what I assumed. I fell and broke my right wrist in April 2021. Yhey paid nothing! A week ago I received an invoice from the ER for close to $4000 dollars with $0 paid by Medishare. Co-pays are expensive too on top of the premium I paid each month. I would Not recommend this to anyone

4/18/2022 03:38:37 pm

We have had a terrible experience with Medishare! I am self employed and my husband worked in a position that didn't offer benefits, so we chose medishare. Mayo Clinic stopped submitting claims to them about 2 years ago so we had to submit them ourselves (no big deal right). Mayo also then considered us self-pay and made us pre-pay for any care. We paid thousands out of pocket assuming that we would get reimbursed within a month or two. We submitted our request for reimbursement right away. Mayo would not give us the UB04 or CMS1500/HCFA forms since we were self pay and not insurance. So when medishare doesn't get the INSURANCE FORMS that they require they will then take up to 6 months to process and reimburse you. Well that is what they say. We are now still waiting on claims from over a year ago that were sent to them in June 2021! They deny them because they need more info even though ALL of the info including diagnostic codes were already sent. It is absolutely criminal what they are doing! Not only do they deny everything they wait 8 months to ask for any more info on it. I have made countless calls to medishare and never get anywhere. The last one today said she couldn't talk to me because I wasn't on my husbands hippa form! Yet they have been talking to only me for the last year! This place is a joke! They hide behind a Christian name yet they run their business this way!

Joseph Eiswert

5/24/2022 09:08:17 am

Thats the exact same way they handled my request for cost share for prostate cancer treatment that I paid out of pocket for in March 2021 with no reimbursement and no I have cancelled my membership. Its a complete scan hiding behind the prayer plan. I am contacting the insurance commissioner for the state of California today.

Jim simons

6/9/2022 12:06:19 am

Ditto

Username 1

5/14/2022 03:25:36 pm

Medishare does not cover any service due to mental health (despite their ads of counseling services). They do not cover preexisting conditions. Had a representative yell over the phone saying they will never cover medications related to such. They label customers with preexisting medications as “needy meds.” What a stigmatizing label, makes the customer feel terrible about seeking help and coverage. Will definitely change my insurance when better plans become available.

Joseph Eiswert

5/24/2022 09:09:41 am

Contact your state Insurance Commissioner and let them know what is going on with Medi-Share. I am today

John Milroy

6/1/2022 10:18:22 am

IF Medi-Share says they are just like your other supplement but cheaper, RUN!!!! They are lying.

Jim simons

6/9/2022 12:02:52 am

I would not recommend this company. They stall your process with floods of paperwork for a year, then they leave you with the bill. They only negotiate a lower price, I could do that myself. Big mistake trusting these people. Run from this company

Amy

7/1/2022 08:50:30 am

We signed up for Medishare thinking that it was a good alternative to regular insurance, which is very expensive since my husband is self employed. HUGE mistake. Our son (15) was diagnosed with Crohn's Disease and Medishare claims it was a pre-existing condition since he had diarrhea as a small child and some food allergies! We are talking $25K+ of medical bills that we will now have to pay out of pocket. Every single doctor has said that they have never dealt with such a difficult company as Medishare. It might be fine if you are healthy, but don't expect this company to cover any real medical costs.

Michele

7/16/2022 02:38:46 pm

I am so sorry for all the problems people have been going through with Medi-share.
We have been members with Samaritan for 5-6 years. We have had none of the issues relayed here. My husband has had $200,000 in bills for 3 separate heart attacks: stents and stays at the hospital. I have had 2 spinal fusion surgeries totaling about $180,000. Samaritan shared every penny and both my husband and I received all our money within 3 months of submitting the bills. One month I received $95,000 in share money and notes of prayers from people sending $400-$ 500 . That is a lot of people. I have even been seeing a chiropractor for care and getting massages weekly(covered up to 40 a year if at a medical practice). I do this as preventative care for my back. It helps so much!!
I hope people will look Samaritan over. You pay the provider and don't have a "middle man" so to speak. I
praise God so much for their Samaritan Ministries.

Linda Robinson

7/17/2022 01:02:24 pm

I sure wished I would have know about all the issues before we signed up for Medishare. I fell and broke both my wrists and they are not paying for my bills either. I will be leaving them as soon as I can. This is not the way Christian's are to act or treat their brothers and sisters in Christ. Very sad.

Joleen Larsen

8/30/2022 12:34:43 pm

NO! DONT DO IT!! Christian is a loose term with this company, and in no way represents true biblical help. They are stealing money from folks that are Christians, though. Emergency surgery on 8 year old has taken almost a year to get dealt with. Dollar amounts change with the wind, the help is not knowledgeable about their jobs, and everyone is confused. This entire ordeal has sent me to collections. Two weeks ago what I owed changed and went up $4000. For no reason they can explain. they even doubled the amount of the claim and cant seem to straighten out. Nightmare. Self employed, family of five, thought this would be helpful but seems we will need to buy insurance at the new year. Which will be more than a house payment, but we have wasted a lot of money here over the years with no help when needed.

Barbara Williams

9/10/2022 02:17:50 am

Medi-share is lovely on the phone when you are putting an application in; but they don't pay any bills. I had shared my health concerns with them when applying; and they said I was a good candidate, but they left my doctor unpaid all year. At the end of the year, I had a whopping Big Bill with my doctor, (4 or 5 thousand dollars) who had gone unpaid all year. When I called to express my concerns, the lovely voice became ugly and short. Conversation over. I agree. DON'T DO IT!

Christian! I don't think so. This is a business.

Rachel Leoaprd

9/12/2022 08:52:08 am

on line info
Medi-Share® Christian Ministry - Nationwide Provider Network
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Earn $100 by Referring a Friend to Join Our Community. Explore the Features of Medi-Share! Works Across All States. Biblical Standards. Health Incentive Discount. Large Provider Network. Services: Affordable Choice, Community Support, Discount Plans.

I really don’t care who reads this letter. I am sure it will be tossed in the trash with a laugh at some else hardship. I would try to appeal to your consideration for this matter, however, the thoughtful comment of “guess you will just have to set up a payment plan with the hospital” shows your compassion for others.
I am so DISTRAUGHT(deeply agitated) with your Insurance Company.
I have just learned that you would not pay a hospital bill for my son’s family, because you do not write bills to the hospital they used because the hospital does not NEGOTIATE with your company. (they had not been informed of this information)
HOW ABOUT YOUR (CHRIST-LIKE) attitude of NOT NEGOTIATING WITH OUR SON’S FAMILY.
His wife had an emergency painful situation, and you think they should have drove 30 mins more to another hospital ! BECAUSE YOU ARE NOT PEOPLE OF GOD THAT CAN SHOW THE ACT OF KINDNESS, EVEN WHEN OTHERS DON’T (NEGOTIATE) WITH YOU ! Treat others as you would have them treat you.
Yes, this is a business. But you claim to be a “Christian Company”.
She also just had a miscarriage, not even knowing she was pregnant and was told she could not get pregnant again !!!!!!
This family has been through tramatic health issues. Depending on YOUR INSURANCE COMPANY TO PAY FOR THEIR HEALTH SERVICES, BY PAYING THE MONTHLY PREMIUM !
Wow, wonder what would have happened , if Jesus told Peter, don’t forgive anymore rather than 70 x 7. Laugh, I don’t think God is laughing at people who claim HIS NAME, but don’t live what His Word teaches
They have a “special needs” child and YOU WANT TO THROW THIS OUTRAGEOUS AMOUNT ON THEIR SHOULDERS. WHEN THEY PAID THEIR PREMIUMS FOR YOUR INSURANCE COMPANY TO TAKE CARE OF THEIR NEEDS.
YOU CAN REST ASSURE, THAT WHEN I TALK WITH EVERYONE I MEET AND MAKE IT AN ABSOULTE PART OF THE CONVERSATION, I WILL SPEAK THE NAME OF “MEDISHARE INSURANCE” AND ALL OF THIS WITH IT. You are supposed to be a NON-Profit and “CHRISTIAN” INSURANCE COMPANY.
on line info
Medi-Share | Christian Health Sharing
https://www.medishare.com
Medi-Share® is a non-profit Christian healthcare sharing ministry that saves members on their monthly medical costs and fosters authentic biblical ...

This is so pathetic. Shame on you for claiming (oh, that’s it) just claiming so you can get other believers deceived in thinking, because it has Christian in the “line of other members paying to HELP other members, TO BUY INTO SHARE THE Insurance cost.
When our son joined your company, he told us about you and we considered joining ourselves. SO GLAD WE DID NOT.
Even our insurance company will pay something, even if we have to go to “out of network” for care.
God sees all and what goes around, comes back around.
Mrs. Leopard
This family has a child with Trisomy 18, YOU a “Biblical” principle organization should be on the frontline trying to help this family, when they paid their premiums, trusting you to take care of their medical needs.

Holly Wonder

10/7/2022 08:10:48 am

Please please please save yourself money and aggravation and don’t join mediShare. This group is a scam and not Christian and will not pay your bills.
I joined in 2010 - I used it because The cost appeared less than traditional insurance. I was never Sick and had no preexisting conditions and a healthy weight individual.
I estimate I paid about $28,000 into it over the years (sharing) and though this was used well.
In 2021 I fell in an accident inside a business and broke my petella and severed my quaddrcept and needed emergency surgery. This happened in mid morning at a coffee shop through no fault of my own -
Anyway - MediShare denied all bills due to accident in a business- when I appealed to a senior team in MediShare she stated it was outside their policy to cover bills - and told me to sue the business for payment.
I had to retain an attorney -
After I asked MediShare if they would pay bills and through my suit I would subrogate (to pay them back) I was then told because it was a suit their policy was to not pay
So - I was told to sue by them then was denied because I had to retain a attorney

For over a year I had to negotiate bills totaling over $ 27,000 with hospitals, ambulance, surgeon, and Physical therapy and other medical personal for my emergency surgery. These entities were far more moral and accommodating and empathetic than anyone in Mefishare.

All MediShare offered was to pray with me - haha! So Christian — NOT. Very hypocritical group.

MediShare is a scam and should be prosecuted for false advertising. My experience was horrendous - especially since I was a member for over 15 years.

Do not join them!

Miss Informed

10/12/2022 01:25:40 pm

I hate Medi-Share! I can't wait to change to regular health insurance. I have had it for 2 years and no matter how many hoops I jump through they have a way to exclude just enough of my submitted medical bills' percentage through their "discounts" (discounts for whom?) and "adjustments" to keep from having to pay a penny. I never can meet the annual household portion no matter how much my medical bills total up to. I had over twice the annual household percentage submitted this year (not to mention all the routine health screenings that they don't pay anything toward, neither do they count these toward your AHP). They said I still had about $600 to go to meet my annual household percentage. You can't have $7500 in submitted medical bills, a $3000 AHP, and come out $500 short of meeting your $3000 AHP. So as far as I'm concerned, I'm out $7500 dollars in medical bills PLUS the monthly "share" of around $600 a month. I could have just gone private pay with NO health sharing plan and saved over $7200 this year alone.

Mike Phillips

11/15/2022 05:24:07 pm

If you are young a very healthy I guess it’s okay but God forbid you ever have a major issue. They hide behind member voted rules etc. Trust me, they are definitely not in this for their Christian brothers and sisters. They love to pray but do not like to pay. Don’t waist your money. Get real insurance!

John D

1/18/2023 01:52:32 pm

I've been a MediShare member since 2017. It has been an up-and-down relationship throughout. My main issues:
1. There is no prescription drug coverage. GoodRx provides a better discount than is available through the MediShare discount. MediShare is definitely not a good fit if you have need for injectibles or other Table 3 or 4 Drugs. I have Psoriasis, and many of the biologic therapies have a manufacturer's program that will drastically reduce your copay IF you have insurance. Since MediShare is NOT insurance, manufacturers decline the copay. So, I have been stuck with topical to get by.
2. MediShare does NOT cover routine mammagrams, or 5 year screening colonoscopies. So it's savings are eaten by the routine wellness screenings required once you're over 50.
3. I find it curious that the screening limitations in their guidelines are billed as "member voted". Again, I've been a member since 2017, and I've never received any survey or query regarding setting of benefits and asking for my input.
4. Since we have 2 colonoscopies, 1 CAT scan (for RCC cancer followup which is considered pre-existing and not covered), and my psoriasis is flaring, we decided to bite the bullet and get a plan through the exchange beginning Feb 1st. Called MediShare to cancel today, 1/18/23, to cancel, and was told that again, due to the guidelines, I would be billed for February even though I am cancelling effective 2/1. I told them under no circumstances did they have authorization to draft from my account as they were providing no benefit, and immediately executed a stop pay order on the bank account.

MediShare may have the ideal client in which the program is a good fit. Unfortunately, that ideal client is 100% healthy with no medical expenses and chooses not to do any preventative care.

Web of Lies

1/13/2023 08:03:06 am

This is a long story.
I just heard a Medi-Share ad on a Christian radio station and recommendation from Dave Ramsey and it made me upset.

A few years ago I lost my job and after researching my options and speaking to a very sweet rep, I chose MediShare. I signed up for a single person coverage with automated premiums taken out of my bank account. A discount was offered for this option to have auto withdrawals from my bank account.

At the one year renewal, they stopped withdrawing the money from my bank account. Unfortunately, I did not find out about the premiums until I reviewed my bank statements a couple of months later.
I called them to find find out what the problem was and I was informed that I had been dropped for lack of payment. I explained that the payments were automated and asked them why they didn't send me a notice of cancellation or call me to find out why the payments stopped.

Anyway, they could not find out why and we decided to catch up on the 2 months of premiums and continue with the auto payments.
A few months after the reinstatement, I had emergency gall stones removal surgery. I provided my MediShare card and the hospital called and confirmed that the procedure was covered.

A few months goes by and I receive a bill from the hospital informing me that MediShare had never responded to the bills sent.
I got on the on the phone and Medishare rep tells me to get the bills from the hospital and fax them.
I obtain the bills from the hospital and fax and keep the confirmation receipt.

A few weeks later, I call the hospital to see if a payment had been received from MediShare and lo and behold, nothing. I call Medishare and they inform me that they have no records of my bills.
I am super angry becuase at this point it is 6 months after the surgery and I am still making premium payments and Medishare is super incompetent.

I tell them that I have a fax confirmation of the bills sent 6 weeks prior.
I proceed to send the bills again. This time I call immediately after faxing to confirm that the fax was received. They confirm receipt and tell me that I will receive a letter confirming how much they will cover in a few days.

A few weeks later, I call to check on the status of my claim and they inform me that they will not cover the procedure.
It turns out, that because my policy had lapsed 16 months ago they would not cover the procedure.

I argue that the lapse was not my fault AND I had made the payments to catch up AND they had continued to withdraw funds from my account.

I asked if my membership was invalid from when it lapsed, why did they continue to take money from me?

They informed me that it is a new policy. I argued that a new policy should not affect my original agreement especially since they never sent me the new policy. The rep tells me that it was updated on their website. How was I supposed to know this?

At this point I was so upset and realized that this company was a bunch of crooks. I stopped the premium payments. I also realized that they had caller ID and my calls were no longer being answered. This was so frustrating.

In essence I paid over $4,000 to this "Christian" company and they lied to me and strung me along. I still had a $6,800 hospital bill that I needed to cover.

I tried to contact my state insurance agency that regulates insurance. But sneakily, since Medishare is not insurance, they are not regulated.

I tried to get BBB involved and the Medishare managers lied that they mailed me the new policy and that I had 30 days to cancel my membership if I did not agree with the policy. All this was a lie.

I pray to God that Christians would stop being so gullible and believing charlatans who subvert the gospel and people who claim to be religious but are out to shear the sheep and make a dollar.

Be Wise as serpents and innocent as Doves, we were warned!

Barbara Williams

1/13/2023 08:58:56 am

What a disgrace. I'm sorry this happened to you. I keep meaning to call Christian stations and let them know not to advertise Medi-share. They never paid my bills either.

Alda

2/3/2023 12:44:39 pm

Why isn't there a class action lawsuit against these jerks? or hundreds? all I'm reading about what has happened - the lying, lack of coverage, the games, taking money out of people's bank accounts with no permission, the stalling, the paperwork and games to avoid paying...its a ILLEGAL. I'm reading thousands of negative, sad stories on dozens of review sites. why isn't MediShare reported to the FCC, the IRS, and get lawyers???

Barbara Williams

2/3/2023 02:06:03 pm

You are right Alda, Want to organize this?

Eric

6/12/2023 10:34:01 pm

Anybody look into the class action lawsuit situation?

Brian

3/8/2023 05:19:09 am

I’m shocked! Shocked I tell you, to find out that ‘Christian’s’+healthcare+money=dubious! Who’d a thunk it?

Jeffrey T Bourke

8/22/2023 10:54:43 am

My Medishare story concisely told. We enrolled with Medishare after my wife retired from teaching. The premium from my companies health insurance was 1700/ month. Medishare offered us coverage for just under 500/month with a 10,000 dollar deductible. We are both healthy no meds..we are a bit overweight. My wife took a bad fall on steps and had a multiple compound fracture of both bones just above the ankle. A spiral fracture. Both bones sticking out through the skin. She had 4 surgeries the 1st being emergency surgery at 11pm with a stability rod and pins outside her leg. She was hospitalized for 11 days ending with a rod down her tibia from her knee to the ankle. The hospital bill was over 100 grand. The surgeon charged 26000. Medishare paid the hospital. But paid just 3000 plus for the surgeon. The deductible was already paid. I went over and over it spending hours and hours..We paid another 17 grand to the surgeon. Medishare kept telling us not to pay its the doctors fault. Both parties pointing fingers at the other. Now we have a collection for 7000 grand. Medishare failed on this. I was in the health insurance industry for 10 years. They did pay the hospital but failed miserably on the doctor bill. Any reasonable person should understand that 26 grand for what the surgeon did for my wife should not be 3000. We did save 1200/ month in premium for over 7 years. That however is not the point.

The Most Common MediShare Complaints

Medi-Share's BBB Status

Medi-Share Health Insurance Complaints

Medi-Share Didn't Accept Me

Medi-Share Requires In-Network Treatment from Doctors and Hospitals

Medi-Share Didn't Pay My Bill

Info Packet and Next Steps

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