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For those that are members of these:
How many claims have you had in the last few years?
Did you have to pay and then get reimbursed?
Was it difficult to get things done?
Anyone know the differences off hand between the different organizations?
I heard some stories a few years ago about folks having to pay up front, and then spending a year fighting to get reimbursed.
Thanks
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There definitely are differences between them, some will cover more than others or have different rules for things. Read and compare the fine print.
My wife's sharing costs her $150/mo for CHM's gold coverage, plus a small quarterly amount for what they call Brother's Keeper, which allows unlimited sharing of expenses. Under this plan, she has a $500 annual deductible.
I have the same plan for myself, and we have one which covers our three kids as well. So family total is $450/mo.
We pay out of pocket for minor things like office visits, prescriptions, etc. We get to pick whoever we want to use, without restriction, because we're paying directly. Since we pay directly, we get to negotiate the price down, which can actually be fun sometimes.
My wife had a minor surgery last year, total bill was just shy of $20K. We sent the bills in for sharing, and CHM sent us a check for the full amount, since she had already met her deductible for that year. It took about 6 months for that process to play out -- a good part of that was spent negotiating prices -- so we set up a payment plan with the hospital while we were waiting. It worked out fine.
I think the people that run into problems with things like this mostly do so because they aren't completely familiar with what they are for, and what they do. This isn't insurance, and certain things are not going to be covered. That is really the whole point. These plans are fantastic for people who want to pay the day to day stuff themselves, but still be covered if something bigger happens.