Liberty Health Share
Category: Healthcare Sharing Ministry
Founders: Dale Bellis, Drudy Abel, Larry Foster
Current Leadership: Dorsey Morrow, CEO since 2021
Established: 2014
Location: Canton, Ohio
Representative products: Members can choose from a variety of plans, including:
Liberty Unite, Liberty Essential, liberty freedomand liberty dental.
overview:
- It began in 1982 as the Christian Brotherhood Newsletter. For $75 a month, members can ask other members to pay for their medical expenses.
- Liberty HealthShare is not an insurance company. It is a nonprofit Christian ministry that describes itself as “a like-minded community of health-conscious individuals and families who want to make wise health care decisions.”
- Like all healthcare sharing ministries, Liberty makes the following mandatory disclosures: “This program does not guarantee or promise that your medical bills will be paid or that payments will be assigned to another person. is optional.”
- Members deposit “shares” with the community each month in the hope that the community will share in any future medical expenses they may incur. Such arrangements have existed in Amish and Mennonite communities since the early 1900s. In recent years, they have spread to mainstream Christianity as well.
- The modern shared health industry began in 2010 with the passage of the Affordable Care Act. This exempts those enrolled in health sharing programs from individual obligations.
- Beginning in 2016, Liberty began denying claims and failing to reimburse both members and providers.suspicion Misuse of member funds and self-dealing As a result, unpaid bills piled up, often leaving members with crippling amounts of debt.
- a Financial results for 2022 The Ohio Attorney General has ordered Liberty and the commercial vendors it employs to set aside millions of dollars in compensation to former and current members. Additionally, Liberty’s management team was fired and barred from working for the company.
- Under CEO Dorsey Morrow, Liberty has continued to grow while systematically repaying outstanding amounts owed to its members.
In his own words (CEO Dorsey Morrow):
We are not trying to avoid the problems that Liberty has had in the past. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. When I was appointed in 2021, the first thing we did was sit down and point out the shortcomings. For us, it’s about digging down and developing an intentional, comprehensive plan for how we’re going to solve problems going forward: how we’re going to provide the kinds of services our members need and deserve. It was important. The work is never done. That applies to any company. We have made great progress and are very proud of where we are as a ministry and where we are heading.
We draw inspiration from Galatians 6:2. “Carry one another’s burdens, and you will fulfill the law of Christ.” Now, [the apostle Paul] I’m not saying you have to carry all the baggage.carry your own luggage [if you can]. Burdens are things we cannot bear alone. That’s our purpose. We are here to encourage believers across the country to help each other.
I am a lawyer, former judge, and mediator. And I’ve been involved in nonprofits for probably the last 25 years or so. So when this position became available, I said, “This is it for me.”
We use 94 cents of every dollar donated by our members to cover medical costs. The remaining 6 cents of every dollar goes to paying salaries, keeping the lights on, and paying for IT. …Transparency is very important to us.
I love this job. Because I get to work with so many great people, including the staff and members who work at Liberty.our members know they can [talk to us] If there is any problem. We love hearing options and ideas. We are constantly evolving. … When you call Liberty HealthShare, you’ll be speaking to someone right here in Canton, Ohio. So we’re very proud of that. We want to stay connected to our members. We also have several people on our staff who are very comfortable praying, writing cards, and engaging with members on a spiritual level.
