ComplaintsforChristian Care Ministry, Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  01/21/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On November 3, 2020, my husband was in an accident that resulted in serious and life threatening injuries. He was picked up in an ambulance and take to Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville, TN. He was in the ER over night, went through an 8 hours surgery the next morning, and then stayed at the hospital a few more days, a week total. We have been members of Christian Care Ministry for 10 years. After being discharged from the hospital, a member of Christian Care Ministry informed me that the hospital we used, Vanderbilt is not "in-network." with out committing to anything, and being vague, they explained I would need to work with a third party negotiator to get our bills lowered. The lady didn't say how the process would go, or what we could expect Christian Care Ministry to do about our bills. She did lead me to believe since it was a life threatening injury, and that hospital was the only with with the right expertise to treat the injuries, there would be an exception made for us. Once I got in touch with the 3rd party negotiator, he informed me that we would work together with the hospital to lower our bill to a self pay rate, then the Christian Care Ministry would pay the bill through the 3rd party negotiator. We proceeded with the plan. It seamed to go as planned, then I stopped hearing back from the 3rd party. when months went by and I finally heard back from the 3rd party N. He was surprised I hadn't been contacted by Christian Care Min. and been informed they terminated the relationship with that patient advocate. So had been waiting for months, nothing was being done on our account with the hospital, and now I was receiving bills from collections agencies. I have tried contacting Christian Care Ministry. I am on hold for over an hour usually. I get no firm information on how to proceed. my whole account is in collections now, it has been over a year and I don't think Christian Care has paid anything. I can't get any info from Christian Care Ministry.

  Business response

  03/04/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2022/02/04) */ We are glad to have been able to discuss this matter with you directly and hope to reach a resolution soon. We appreciate your frustration with reaching a representative, as call volume has been high and our wait times longer than usual. Thank you for your patience. We are in the process of hiring and training more representatives to better serve our members and providers. For further assistance, please reach out to the representative assigned to your case.

• Initial Complaint

  01/18/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  We purchased Medishare in May, 2021 when my husband lost his job. It seemed like an OK plan in case of emergency. We paid our "premiums" faithfully May through November. That is where the nightmare begins. We tried unsuccessfully, or maybe by design on their end, to contact them to cancel our sharing plan because, thankfully, my spouse started a new job November 15, 2021. We would have traditional insurance as of Demember 1st, 2021. I tried to call them and you can't get through. It takes hours to do so. They offer "chat", but that also didn't work. It just kept "spinning". I emailed several times to cancel, and only got the response that I "had to call", which as stated, you can't unless you can sit on hold all day. When I finally got through a week in do ago, the rep even asked "how long did you have to wait?" Well, she cancelled the plan, but not until February 1, 2022, allowing them to bill us yet again for a new month when we have had other coverage since Dec 1, 2021! I emailed after that call kast week, and have yet to get a response. We owe them nothing. They have never even "shared" one bill, not even for routine checkups or labs. I expect this alleged "bill" to be wiped clean with no effect on our credit. Period.

  Business response

  02/09/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2022/01/26) */ We thank you for alerting us of your frustration and apologize for the extended hold time you experienced due to high call volume. Your request to withdraw has been completed and backdated to your desired withdrawal date. Consumer Response /* (2000, 8, 2022/01/27) */ (The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.)

• Initial Complaint

  11/20/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Medi-share is a Christian Care Ministry that helps pay for medical bills - if you're living a Christian lifestyle. They refused to help pay for any of my son's medical bills because they said he was injured while doing something "illegal". I was completely shocked. My 12 year-old son was a PASSENGER in a Polaris side-by-side accident. The driver was 14, so I thought they had confused him as the operator, so I clarified that my son was a passenger, and that both boys were of appropriate height, weight, had seatbelts, and permission to use the vehicle. They said that according to the Polaris Manual the vehicle was "only for adults" so therefore they wouldn't pay a dime. My son did not break the law and he did nothing wrong. We don't even have helmet laws in Texas but we still reviewed the copy of the manual they sent us entirely and found NOTHING REGARDING PASSENGER AGE LIMITS so I'm questioning why they won't pay for my son's medical bills. They don't care about my son's injury or paralysis. By refusing to pay they are speaking for Polaris and saying children in an ATV vehicle is illegal activity AND NOT CHRISTIAN. I paid them faithfully every month to have coverage in case something happened to my family. We are law abiding, responsible Christians, and now we are in financial ruin because Medi-share is misquoting the Polaris manual TO AVOID paying my son's medical bills. I caution anyone considering this company to see them for what they are, a scam that prays on trusting, responsible Christians who will pay them every month for support they will never provide. I would like reimbursement of premiums they scammed and payment of my son's expenses; the emergency rooms, x-rays, MRI scans, surgeons, physical therapists, dermatologist for road rash, and child phycologist so that he can process the impact of his paralysis on sports and transition to special education at school. Despicable that they would lie, manipulate, and bankrupt families by using God!

  Business response

  01/20/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2021/12/07) */ We appreciate your frustration and would appreciate the opportunity to speak further with you regarding this concern. Medical bills are processed for sharing according to member-voted guidelines, which also provide a route for appeal when a member feels the guidelines have been misapplied. Members are welcome to appeal decisions and have an option for a panel conference with seven fellow members in which CCM and the Member will both submit a written position statement to the panel. A teleconference will be held where the panel can ask questions of both the Member and CCM. A simple majority vote (four out of seven) will carry the decision. Please reach out to the representative assigned to your case for further assistance if you are interested in pursuing the appeal. Consumer Response /* (3000, 7, 2021/12/15) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) They responded and pointed to their fraudulent 'Motor Vehicle Member Guidelines' which are a deceitful catch all to avoid paying my son's medical bills. I stopped paying Medi-Share as soon as I found out they were defrauding me. They are now charging me for unpaid dues in addition to not paying the medical bills and calling me "unChristian". I can't begin to describe what this company has done to me and my family, financially, emotionally, and physically. I have actually vomited after opening their correspondence and cried myself to sleep. I refuse to speak directly to them again as I have cried, begged, and pleaded with them and they have treated me and my son like dirt for ONE HUNDRED AND FOURTY FOUR DAYS. They have every bill and detail about my son's injuries and the accident. If they don't pay his bills because of their made-up guidelines for PASSENGERS I demand that they return every single premium I paid them for non-existing coverage and I'm happy to testify in court about what they did to me. Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2021/12/30) */ We have attempted to reach this member to discuss the matter further but have been unsuccessful in reaching them. We will continue to reach out until the matter can be resolved.

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