Health care sharing ministries, an alternative to health insurance allowed under the Affordable Care Act, have grown in popularity since 2010 with about 450,000 Americans now participating, the Tampa Bay Times reports.
There are four major health care sharing ministries in the United States, including the Medi-Share program, which has 160,000 members, 8,000 of whom live in Florida, according to the Times. The general concept is that members pay a monthly fee, and when significant medical expenses arise, other members help cover those costs.
Most states, including Florida, exclude these ministries from the state insurance code. That means there’s no state oversight of the sharing ministries, experts told the Times.
