How the non-Amish might still obtain an exemption from the Democrat's Healthcare Bill

- Reads like the IRS. Good luck, America, you got the Obamacare you wanted! -

WorldnetDaily, Does your faith free you from forced Obamacare?, April 6, 2010

 

Non-Amish to jump through bureaucratic hoops!

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act provides a second form of religious exemption, one for those who are members of "of a health-care sharing ministry," which is defined as a non-profit, health-insurance alternative program, where members typically pay in regular dues and then contribute toward one another's medical costs.

To qualify for the exemption, the Act requires a sharing ministry to meet the following conditions:

• It must be a qualifying 501(c)(3) organization exempt from taxation under section 501(a)
  
• It's members must "share a common set of ethical or religious beliefs and share medical expenses among members in accordance with those beliefs and without regard to the state in which a member resides or is employed"
  
• Its members must retain their memberships, even after developing medical conditions
  
• The sharing ministry or its predecessor must have been in existence at all times since Dec. 31, 1999, and medical expenses of its members must have been shared continuously and without interruption since at least Dec. 31, 1999
  
• It must conduct annual audits made available to the public on request and performed by an independent certified public accounting firm.

The Amish – thus double qualifying for exemption from the mandate – have participated in such co-ops for years. But there are also several such ministries established in the U.S. for people of other faiths and denominations.

Christian Healthcare Ministries, for example, is a 501(c)(3) cost-sharing ministry that claims its more than 100,000 members have shared more than $500 million in medical bills over the last 20 years.

"Christian Healthcare Ministries is not a health-insurance company," the group's website explains. "Rather, we are a group of thousands of Christians across the United States and around the world who share each other's burdens in the area of health-care costs. We also pray for and encourage one another."

Among similar groups are Medi-Share and Samaritan Ministries.

Muslims have also developed similar programs in line with the Islamic principal of takaful, or mutual sharing of one another's needs. Dozens of these programs have sprung up throughout Arab nations since the 1960s but have been a newer phenomenon in the U.S. and are difficult to find. WND contacted several Islamic relations and education organizations as well as financial institutions and was unable to find a takaful-insurance program covering medical expenses for American Muslims.

 

Source: WorldnetDaily, Does your faith free you from forced Obamacare?, April 6, 2010