About Liberty HealthShare
Founded in 2013 (doing business since 2014), Liberty HealthShare serves over 220,000 members from its Ohio base. Liberty Healthcare, a “healthcare sharing ministry of Gospel Light Mennonite Church Medical Aid Plan, Inc.”, shared more than $1.2 billion in the last 4 years. Interestingly, Liberty HealthShare values member privacy. Members choose how their names appear on their accounts, member diagnoses are hidden so only the medical expense can be seen, and membership dues transfer directly from member to member instead of first being deposited into a company bank account.
Because Liberty HealthShare does not have a recommended provider network, service appears available nationwide (except Pennsylvania). Liberty members use Healthcare Bluebook to find reasonably-priced medical care. Other benefits include a telehealth service and a payment method called “Sharebox.” Sharebox lets members see exactly where their membership dues go, and allows them to send messages of encouragement, prayer, and healing to others in the community.
Like most healthshares, Liberty restricts pre-existing conditions. No costs for these conditions are shareable until the member reaches their second year of membership. (As of March 2022, it appears that Liberty discontinued their Health Trac program which allowed some exceptions to this restriction).
Membership Requirements:
Members must believe:
- that personal rights and liberties are bestowed by God, not granted by government or men
- every individual has the right to worship the God of the Bible in his or her own way
- that they have a biblical and ethical obligation to assist others
- that it is a duty to have a healthy lifestyle and avoid anything that can cause bad health
- that it is a right to direct their own healthcare free from government dictates, restraints, and oversight
Also, members must not use tobacco. Members who use tobacco products must stop within 6 months of joining and then pass a nicotine test.
Key Considerations:
- 90-day waiting period for most expenses, minimum
- National availability
- No provider network
- Discounts for prescriptions and some services
- Accepts members older than 65 for an extra cost
- Annual Unshared Amounts (AUA) work like a traditional deductible
- Liberty Unite shares up to $1 million per incident after AUA
- Liberty Connect shares up to $1 million per incident after AUA; members pay a 15% co-share
- Liberty Essential shares up to $600,000 per incident after AUA; members pay a 25% co-share
Pros:
- Liberty’s use of HealthShareRx and SavNet Savings Program gives discounts on prescriptions and providers
- Membership includes access to the Healthcare Blue Book to check pricing
- Three program options ($159-$359 per month for an individual plan, depending on age)
- Sharing options for pre-existing conditions in the second year of membership
- Ability to see exactly who membership costs helped
- Can send and receive supportive messages
- Telehealth service
- Some preventive services may be shareable
- Low Annual Unshared Amounts (AUA) for most plans ($1000/single, $1750/couple, $2250/family). AUAs work like a traditional deductible – sharing begins after the amount is met.
- Accepts members over 65 for $25 dollars more per month
- Pregnant members receive a Maternity Facilitator to help them
Cons:
- Enrollment requires completing a health questionnaire
- A woman must belong to Liberty before her child’s conception for maternity costs to be shareable. Also, a review team must approve pregnancies; otherwise, costs are not shareable.
- No mental health assistance
- Dental, vision, hearing, and chiropractic care are not shareable
- Extremely slow payments. Members say it often takes longer than 180 days for claims to be paid or reimbursed; many negative reviews mention bills going to collections
- Confusing Annual Unshared Amounts (AUA). Members report that for some expenses, only part of the bill was applied to their AUA, making it take much longer for them to reach the amount that allowing their expenses to be shared
- The cheapest plan has a much higher AUA
- Reviews suggest that the company is not helpful
- Reviews suggest that Liberty HealthShare bases their payments for bills on what members would pay if they were on Medicare, which frustrates providers
Ideal Candidates:
- Have great health and do not use tobacco
- Can afford to pay their own bills in full and wait for reimbursement
- Value having no restrictions on providers
- Want to help others
- Value privacy
- Want to see where their membership dues are going
