Ep 103The Healthcare Secret Jewish Families are Using to Save $30,000 PER YEAR
He paid $500 cash, then used his insurance, and the bill jumped to $20,000
Rabbi Moishe Katz, United Refuah HealthShare
The Healthcare Secret Jewish Families are Using to Save $30,000 PER YEAR
with Rabbi Moishe Katz, United Refuah HealthShare
It's not what can I get out of the system. It's what can I do to make the system work that this should be good for all of us.
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Quotes
“We are not insurance. We do not establish limited networks.”
“We've never had a case where we denied a member medically necessary care.”
“Probably 40% of them I'll tell them this is not the right fit for you or not a better fit than what you currently have.”
“Take care of the surgery and then come and join.”
“To be a healthcare consumer, be ready to have a little bit of sweat behind your ears.”
“Your $4.99 went to help other families that did have medical expenses and you were spared those medical expenses.”
“Don't think just because you're saving that you should um start spending.”
Takeaways
- 1 A Lakewood family's renewal quote was $48,000 a year in premiums plus up to $13,000 out of pocket - $61,000 a year on healthcare.
- 2 A health share lets members with shared religious beliefs split each other's medical bills. It is legally exempt from insurance requirements but is not insurance and cannot promise payment.
- 3 United Refuah (Cleveland) launched in June 2018 with 100 members. It now has five-digit membership and grew about 55% last year. Prices haven't gone up since launch: $199 single, $349 couple, $499 for a family of six, plus $50 per extra member.
- 4 Members can use almost any doctor or hospital, including cash-only doctors and doctors abroad. The share allows up to 150% of Medicare rates, so providers charging more can leave members with a balance. There is no hard out-of-pocket maximum.
- 5 Family cost-sharing: the first $1,500 a year, then 20% of the next $20,000 (up to $4,000), then 100% up to $1 million per incident. Annual well visits and wellness labs are paid from the first dollar. A typical healthy family pays about $2,000-2,500 a year out of pocket.
- 6 Pre-existing conditions: usually no sharing in year one, $25,000 a year in years two and three, then full sharing. Prices can't be raised based on health.
- 7 Downsides: regular prescriptions, ADHD medications, growth hormones and CPAP machines aren't shared, and members have to submit bills (within 90 days) and sometimes negotiate prices themselves.
- 8 Self-pay prices can be far lower than insured prices. One member's $500 self-pay ER bill became $20,000 once he reinstated his insurance, and he owed $2,000.
- 9 Examples of repricing: a $100,000 heart surgery for $25,000 as a prepaid self-pay package, and a $170,000 chemotherapy bill repriced to about $25,000.
- 10 By law a health share must be a nonprofit, have existed since 1999 (or succeed one that did), take only members with the same beliefs, not drop members who get sick, and get a yearly outside CPA audit.