Frequently Asked Questions

CHM is the original nonprofit health cost sharing ministry. Our biblical community of members in the United States and around the world “share” (voluntarily pay) each other’s eligible medical bills through monthly contributions.

The powerful outcome is that members have taken care of over $10 billion in medical bills while keeping participation costs low.

Christian Healthcare Ministries offers four programs: CHM Gold ($240 per unit, per month), CHM Silver ($138 per unit, per month), CHM Bronze ($92 per unit, per month), and SeniorShare™($115 per unit, per month). CHM Plus is for catastrophic medical bills and is an optional (but highly recommended) add-on with a monthly cost of $27 per unit. For more information, visit our programs page.

While it’s impossible to predict our members’ future health, well-being, and medical costs, we keep our monthly contribution amounts as low as possible. We evaluate the cost of sharing medical bills regularly to make sure that CHM is taking care of our members in a timely manner. Our record shows that we are meeting this goal despite rising medical costs.

The eligibility of any bill is ultimately determined by the CHM Guidelines and the member’s participation level when the signs or symptoms began.

CHM has a maximum lifetime limit of $125,000 for each illness (exception: congenital birth defects) that qualifies according to CHM Guidelines. For information about health cost support of up to $1 million per illness or more, see the Guidelines about CHM Plus.

Christian Healthcare Ministries (CHM) is perfect for growing families. We use a unit system. A unit is a participating individual within a membership. A single person is one unit, a married couple is two units (any two individuals must be two units), and a family is three units, regardless of the number of dependent children. Each individual can participate in different programs.

Single-parent households: If you are legally and financially responsible for a child or children, your membership will be in two units (the parent is the first unit, and all children are the second unit).

Households with one participating spouse: If one spouse is a CHM member and the other spouse chooses not to be a member, the participating spouse is one CHM unit, and all dependent children are an additional unit (a total of two units).

Adult children: Adult children can be a part of your membership until they are 26 as long as they meet all the qualifications required to remain a dependent. Please see the CHM Guidelines for membership qualifications for adult children.

Adopted children: When a CHM member adopts a child or otherwise has obtained legal custody with legal responsibility for a child’s medical care, that child can be included in their CHM membership. If any other source is responsible, willing, or available to pay the child’s medical bills, these resources must be exhausted before CHM members can share bills. CHM cannot share bills for adoption expenses or any medical expenses incurred before you become legally and financially responsible for the child, nor can we share any birth expenses for an adopted child.

At CHM, we define a pre-existing condition as any medical condition for which you experience signs, symptoms, testing, or treatment before joining CHM, regardless of whether you have received a diagnosis. (Routine or maintenance medications are considered treatment.)

For example, if you have a stent inserted for a heart condition, the stent is considered treatment, and your heart condition is pre-existing.

CHM considers a condition no longer pre-existing if you have experienced one year without signs, symptoms, or treatment (including no maintenance medication) for that condition and your official medical records document it. In contrast, cancer is no longer pre-existing if, after your doctor has pronounced you cancer-free, you have gone five years without any signs, symptoms, testing, or treatment (other than routine, follow-up appointments). 

CHM shares eligible costs for maintained pre-existing conditions. For detailed information regarding pre-existing conditions, see the CHM Guidelines.

In general, eligible medical bills are shared by CHM members in the order CHM receives them. The sharing “clock” starts on the date that our offices receive medical bills and all necessary forms. Most medical bills are shared in 95 – 105 days. However, this is not a guarantee. In rare instances, it can take longer if CHM is waiting on members or healthcare providers to submit necessary information.

Medical bills must be submitted within six months from the date of service. The sooner CHM receives members’ medical bills, the sooner staff can put them in the queue for medical bill processing.

We recommend not paying upfront for medical bills at the time of treatment. Members should ask medical providers to bill them directly and set up a payment plan as needed until CHM completes the sharing process. For more information, download the info pack.

If you have any questions as an existing member, take a look at our member resources.

There are several free prescription discount programs available to Americans, and we encourage members to explore those options for their prescription costs. Our staff can provide recommendations. We include a list of suggestions in each new member’s Welcome Packet.

For CHM Gold members, incident-related prescriptions are eligible for sharing. Please see the Guidelines for more information about prescription sharing eligibility on the CHM Gold program.

CHM offers a Maternity Guide at no extra cost to CHM Gold members. CHM members share qualifying bills up to $125,000 (or an unlimited amount when also a member of CHM Plus) per pregnancy for prenatal care, delivery, home births, midwives, postnatal care, and birth complications. The CHM Silver and CHM Bronze programs exclude maternity sharing.

If a member joins CHM while pregnant, CHM cannot share bills for that pregnancy or any related complications. Members must have a due date for delivery at least 300 days after joining the CHM Gold program for bills to be eligible for sharing. Women who become pregnant after joining the CHM Gold program can reduce their Personal Responsibility amount from $1,500 to $1,000 for that medical incident by calling CHM within the first 16 weeks of pregnancy.

Through HealthiestYou™, CHM members can connect with doctors free of charge over the phone or through video chat.

This service is available to all members at no additional cost to them (a few services, such as dermatology, do require a nominal fee). It offers 24/7 access to licensed physicians seven days a week. Members of any age can participate and receive quality medical care—even from the comfort of their own homes. If you have any questions as an existing member, take a look at our member resources.

With CHM, you can enroll anytime! Complete our online application, and your membership can begin immediately. However, please remember that medical expenses incurred from active pre-existing conditions are ineligible for sharing. See the CHM Guidelines for more details about sharing programs for medical bills incurred from pre-existing conditions.

No one is excluded from participating in CHM based on age, health, or geographic location.

Please note that Christian Healthcare Ministries cannot share bills for treating ineligible medical conditions (see the CHM Guidelines).

The qualifications for joining are simple: Participating adults must be Christians who attend worship regularly as health permits (Hebrews 10:25), actively follow the teachings of the New Testament in its entirety, and live a lifestyle consistent with the CHM Statements of Beliefs.

CHM members must abstain from the following activity: use of any tobacco, nicotine, smoking device, or substitutionary smoking device (including but not limited to cigarettes, cigars, pipes, herbal cigarettes, e-cigarettes, vape pens, etc.); illegal use of drugs; and sexual immorality (as defined in the Scriptures and expressed in CHM’s Statements of Beliefs). Additionally, members must follow biblical principles concerning the use of alcohol.

If you live outside of the U.S., you can still join CHM. However, please note that CHM members must have access to a U.S. mailing address or reliable internet service capable of receiving documents with confidential information. CHM cannot send funds outside the U.S.; CHM members must translate all bills submitted into English and convert their bills to U.S. dollars.

Many members use CHM above and beyond their Medicare coverage. If you’re Medicare age or Medicare eligible, you must have parts A and B (or a Medicare Advantage Plan) to receive full sharing eligibility. For more information, click here.

With CHM, you have the flexibility to choose your healthcare provider. The CHM Guidelines outline which medical expenses the CHM family takes care of.

It is important to note that CHM cannot share bills concerning care from non-medical providers (chiropractors, psychologists, counselors, naturopaths, homeopaths, etc.) or any medical doctors practicing alternative, complementary, or functional treatment.

We believe that spiritually supporting each other is as important as the financial support members receive. Our Prayers Unceasing program provides members the opportunity to put faith into action by strengthening brothers and sisters in Christ by lifting them in prayer and sending them cards, letters, or emails of encouragement.

CHM staff also pray daily for members, especially those who have submitted prayer requests by mail, email, or phone. Many staff members are prayer warriors available to pray with you over the phone at your request.

We have a very healthy ministry, which is proven by other third-party evaluations. Over $10 billion have been satisfied in medical bills since 1981. CHM’s administrative costs as a nonprofit are under 10%, which is low for our industry. Additionally, CHM earned a first-in-the-nation independent accreditation by Demotech in 30 areas of financial and operational standards and accountability.

CHM is a federally certified exemption to the individual mandate under the U.S. Affordable Care Act. CHM has an eligible option for individuals and families under the national healthcare law. To learn more, click here.

Your monthly contribution required for membership is not tax deductible*; however, all extra giving over and above your minimum monthly contribution to Christian Healthcare Ministries (including Prayer Page giving) qualifies as a charitable contribution for tax purposes. Christian Healthcare Ministries, Inc. is exempt from federal income tax under Section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

*Per Missouri and Indiana law, monthly contributions are tax deductible for members who are residents in these states.