Health sharing in Michigan
Michigan has a statutory notice that sharing organizations must give participants. It is the clearest statement of what the arrangement is, so we publish it in full rather than paraphrasing it.
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.
Michigan Section 550.1867
Notice: Zion HealthShare is not an insurance company and the financial assistance provided through the ministry is not insurance and is not provided through an insurance company. Whether any participant in the ministry chooses to assist another participant who has financial or medical needs is totally voluntary. A participant will not be compelled by law to contribute toward the financial or medical needs of another participant. This document is not a contract of insurance or a promise to pay for the financial or medical needs of a participant by the ministry. A participant who receives assistance from the ministry for his or her financial or medical needs remains personally responsible for the payment of all of his or her medical bills and other obligations incurred in meeting his or her financial or medical needs.
What this means for a Michigan household
The notice is the state telling you, in the state’s own words, that the organization is not an insurance company and that no one is compelled to pay your bill. Read it before a marketing page, not after.
The existence of a safe-harbor notice does not mean the state reviews a program’s finances, approves its guidelines, or backs its obligations. It means the state has carved these arrangements out of the insurance code on the condition that participants are told what they are joining.
Before you enroll
- Confirm the program is actually accepting members in Michigan.
- Read the current guideline document, including the unshareable list.
- Check whether your state has its own coverage mandate — a sharing membership generally does not satisfy one.
- Compare against a Marketplace plan with any subsidy you qualify for before deciding.