For health insurance, customers keep the faith MiamiHerald.com
When Jeff Masters had $30,000 in medical bills after getting bladder cancer, he didn't pay through conventional insurance. Instead, he had thousands of fellow Christians foot the bill.
Masters, who lives in Fort Lauderdale, is part of a growing number of Americans who are members of faith-based ``health sharing ministries'' where members directly pay for each others' medical bills. Members also pray for each other, and a ``get well'' card from a stranger isn't uncommon.
National healthcare reform will force millions of Americans to buy insurance or face fines, but a little-noticed provision excludes people like Masters who belong to such groups.
For $533 a month paid through Medi-Share, a service of Melbourne-based Christian Care Medical Sharing, Masters gets coverage for himself, his wife and two daughters. That's almost one-third what the self-employed financial planner once paid for insurance.
Medi-Share members agree to a ``biblical lifestyle'' that includes regular church attendance and no sex out of marriage. They agree to healthly habits: no smoking or illegal drugs and no alcohol abuse. Abortion and birth control are not covered. Members who are overweight can be denied coverage. The fit ones get discounts.
Mitt Romney is feeling more and more pressure to cheat on his wife, lest he find himself isolated and uncompetitive in the 2012 race for the Republican presidential nomination. ### 
![Today's the Day to Make Your Voice Heard on Health Care AFL-CIO]("http://nt0.ggpht.com/news/tbn/qCQn3b0crWqfDM/6.jpg")
AFL-CIOToday's the Day to Make Your Voice Heard on Health CareAFL-CIOParticipants will call for real change in health care, including a public health insurance option for workers and families who either have private insurance and more »