Oregon Democrat's bill cracks down on Christian "health care cost sharing" ministries
Faith-based "health share" companies have left many families in medical debt. Rep. Bob Nosse wants more transparency in the system.
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An Oregon lawmaker has introduced a bill designed to crack down on Christian “health care cost sharing” companies that have scammed upwards of 1.5 million people across the country. House Bill 2268, introduced by State Rep. Rob Nosse, would require such companies to disclose basic information about what services they provide (and don’t provide), forbid them from claiming they’re actual “health insurance” companies (because they’re not), and force them to disclose how much money they’ve collected and paid out.
In short, the bill would provide customers with better information so they know what they’re buying into, allowing them to hold Health Care Sharing Ministries (HCSMs) accountable if they fail to deliver on their promises.
Before diving into the specifics of this bill, it’s important to understand what we’re even talking about. In 2022, Christianity Today found that Sharity Ministries (formerly Trinity HealthShare), which filed for bankruptcy in 2021, left 10,000+ families with unpaid bills totaling over $50 million. That’s just one company. There are several others just like it.
What are Health Care Sharing Ministries?
While every company operates a little differently, HCSMs like Samaritan Ministries and Liberty HealthShare ask everyone in the system to pay a specific amount into the insurance pool every month… and if you ever need something covered, you make a request and the company will send a certain amount of money to you or your provider.
That’s not really different from regular insurance, but these companies are not regulated, refuse to cover certain services, and can cut you off at anytime if you become too expensive to insure. Even worse: If you do something they deem “immoral,” you may not get any money at all. (HCSMs generally do not cover contraception, extend care to your same-sex partner, and refuse to assist with abortion care.)
So everything is fine… until the moment you need them the most. Many participants don’t realize that until it’s too late. They also don’t realize how badly they can get screwed over. California once sued an HCSM, claiming that it “routinely denied claims and spent just 16 cents of every dollar in premiums on health care expenses.” By contrast, the Affordable Care Act requires (legitimate) health insurance companies to spend at least 80 cents of every dollar on expenses.
There have been numerous articles written over the years about customers who were denied help precisely when they expected to receive it. The end result is that Christian insurance companies are just like Christian movies and Christian theme parks: They claim to offer suitable alternatives for secular services… but they’re so much worse than the real things.
Even John Oliver of Last Week Tonight spent an episode talking about these faith-based frauds:
What the Oregon bill would do
The new legislation proposed by Rep. Nosse would try to prevent the worst case scenarios from taking place by doing four things in particular:
Require HCSM sellers to register with the state. Anyone who offers or sells HCSMs would have to register with Oregon’s Department of Consumer and Business Services.
Require HCSMs to be transparent about coverage. The companies would have to file an annual report saying how many enrollees they have, how much money those clients pay them, and how much money the company pays out as claims.
Forbid HCSMs from calling themselves “health insurance.” That means no advertising or marketing suggesting they’re legitimate insurance providers.
Require HCSMs to disclose which medical services they will not cover. That includes reproductive care, HIV/AIDS medication, and gender-affirming care.
None of that would stop HCSMs from existing. None of that would interfere with their faith. This is about consumer protection, not religious oppression. It’s about transparency, not censorship.
The Center for Freethought Equality, the advocacy arm of the American Humanist Association, has praised the bill and is calling on Oregon lawmakers to pass it:
“The Center for Freethought Equality is proud to partner with Rep. Nosse to bring greater transparency to these questionable organizations masquerading as insurers. We stand ready to help Oregon pass this legislation to protect the well-being of its residents,” said Fish Stark, Executive Director of the Center for Freethought Equality. “Oregon can send a clear message to these health care cost sharing organizations, who often hide behind the pretense of religion, that denying vulnerable people health care coverage and defrauding them when they need it the most is unacceptable.”
Leave it to an organization representing non-religious Americans to promote legislation meant to keep Christians honest because those Christians can’t do it themselves.
For now, the bill is in the hands of the House Committee On Behavioral Health and Health Care.
(Large portions of this article were published earlier)
Cue the religious right to scream persecution! "How dare anyone question what we're doing because we've been divinely sanctioned by Jesus himself!" On the one hand I have some sympathy for the people who get taken to the cleaners by organizations like this, but it also begs the question of why did they ever trust something like this in the first place when religious scams abound and mega-church preacher-grifters steal money by the boatload?
So the state of Oregon is going to hold these HCSMs to account? EXCELLENT! It is entirely past time that such organizations had their proverbial feet held to the fire. We've seen too many stories about church-run businesses being allowed to do whatever they pleased and get off scot-free. This story tells me that SOMEONE has noticed, certainly in the person of Representative Nosse, and my hat's off to him!
Let's hope that 1) this passes and 2) it's the start of a trend!