Altrua HealthShare
Christian cost-sharing administered by Altrua Ministries. Sharing publicly dated to 1996. Not insurance.
- Editorial score
- 69
- Methodology
- 2026.2
- Reviewed
- 2026-09-01
Health sharing is not insurance. Programs are not legally required to pay medical expenses and do not have to provide Affordable Care Act protections. NAIC consumer guidance.
Identity and structure
We separate the consumer brand from the organization that actually administers sharing, so two white labels of one program cannot look like two independent choices.
- Consumer brand
- Altrua HealthShare
- Underlying sharing organization
- Altrua Ministries
- Program administrator
- Altrua Ministries
- Underlying program group
- altrua-core
- Membership standard
- Christian faith and lifestyle standards
- Sharing model
- Health-care sharing ministry
- Directory status
- Enrolling
- State exclusions (verified)
- No verified exclusion list
- Operating since
- 1996
- CMS-named HCSM
- Yes — named among the large federal HCSMs
Best for
- Christians comparing Alliance-member ministries beyond the big three
Not ideal for
- Secular households
- Anyone needing guaranteed payment
Program facts
- Monthly share
- Age- and household-banded shares on Diamond, Emerald, Sapphire, Ruby, and MyShare. Public contribution charts exist; we do not treat them as a quote.
- Member responsibility (IUA)
- Member responsibility amount (MRA) that varies by product. Confirm the current book — the dated public GEMs PDF is March 2023.
- Household pricing
- Household-based. Extra dependents can add a published increment on some products.
- State availability
- Marketed nationwide; some options are void where prohibited. Adoption and funeral sharing are not available to Texas residents on the public memberships page.
- Pre-existing conditions
- The 2023 GEMs book describes two-year, five-year, and lifetime limitations. Undisclosed history can be applied retroactively.
- Waiting / phase-in
- Product-specific. Maternity on some products has a 90-day wait.
- Maternity
- FAQ: Diamond, Emerald, and optional MyShare after 90 days; year-one sharing capped and a $5,000 MRA. Confirm the current guideline, not the FAQ alone.
- Preventive
- Not an ACA mandate.
- Prescriptions
- ManifestRx discounts advertised; mental health, birth control, and other ineligible needs are excluded from that discount.
- Virtual care
- Confirm current partners.
- Provider access
- Typically any provider. Provider submission paths changed for dates of service beginning October 1, 2025.
- Limits
- Lifetime limits vary by gemstone product on the public memberships page ($1M–$2M). Confirm the current guideline.
- Membership requirements
- Statement of Standards and a healthy-lifestyle attestation. Age window on the 2023 GEMs book: 30 days to 64 years.
- Cancellation
- Ministry membership rules. Annual commitment form.
How this score was built
| Dimension | Weight | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Sharing scope and material limitations Diamond / Emerald / Sapphire / Ruby and MyShare. Pre-existing needs can carry two-year, five-year, or lifetime limits. Maternity is optional on some products with year-one caps. | 20 | 68 |
| Cost and member responsibility Age- and household-banded monthly shares plus a member responsibility amount. Public contribution charts exist; we do not treat them as a quote. | 20 | 70 |
| Transparency and guideline clarity A guidelines landing page exists, but the dated public GEMs PDF is March 2023. Current rules may live in the member app. | 20 | 64 |
| Member support and advocacy Documented member services and an advance-opinion process. Provider submission paths changed October 2025. | 15 | 70 |
| Provider access and included services Typically any provider. Prescription discounts exclude several categories named in the FAQ. | 10 | 68 |
| Administration and operating history Sharing publicly dated to 1996. CMS-named. Alliance member. | 10 | 82 |
| Evidence freshness and completeness Latest dated public guideline PDF we reviewed is March 2023. That staleness is scored here, not guessed away. | 5 | 52 |
Known limitations
- Score uses the latest dated public PDF, not an unpublished app-only revision.
- Faith / Statement of Standards is a hard filter, not a scoring penalty.
- SourceAltrua GEMs Membership Guidelines (March 2023) — latest dated public PDFEffective 2026-09-01Reviewed 2026-09-01
- SourceAltrua guidelines landing pageEffective 2026-09-01Reviewed 2026-09-01
- SourceAltrua common questionsEffective 2026-09-01Reviewed 2026-09-01
- SourceAlliance of HCSMs — member ministriesEffective 2026-09-01Reviewed 2026-09-01