Christian Healthcare Ministries

What Christian Healthcare Ministries does

Christian Healthcare Ministries (CHM) is a Barberton, Ohio-based nonprofit health cost sharing ministry founded in 1981, operating as a faith-based alternative to traditional health insurance for Christian individuals, families, and organizations across all 50 U.S. states and internationally. Members voluntarily send monthly contributions — ranging from $115 to $299 depending on program tier — that are pooled to pay eligible medical bills of fellow members, with no network restrictions and freedom to choose any healthcare provider. CHM offers four core programs (Gold, Silver, Bronze, and SeniorShare) plus two add-ons (CHM Plus for catastrophic and maternity coverage, and CHM Give for pre-existing condition donations), and was the first health cost sharing ministry to achieve independent Demotech accreditation.

The organization's technology platform consists of a member-facing portal for bill submission, account management, and biometric login, a separate group portal for employer/church enrollment administration, and integrations with HealthTap for telemedicine video visits. The business model is straightforward subscription recurring revenue from monthly member contributions, augmented by voluntary above-contribution donations through CHM Give. Marketing is primarily community-led, driven by word-of-mouth referrals (which generated $2,057,963 in 2025 referral credits), content marketing through the company's blog, and direct-to-consumer enrollment via phone and the join.chministries.org website. In 2025, members submitted $1.557 billion in eligible medical bills, of which $609 million was shared after an average 45% discount negotiated by CHM.

CHM is federally certified and has cumulatively satisfied over $12 billion in member healthcare costs since inception. The organization competes in the alternative-to-insurance market alongside other health cost sharing ministries, differentiating through its longest-serving operational history, network-free provider choice, and explicit guarantees against member removal or repricing due to health conditions. It serves a primary segment of individuals and families (including self-employed and early retirees) plus a secondary segment of groups and organizations, with no external ownership, no parent company, and no venture capital or private equity backing.

Name

Christian Healthcare Ministries

Legal name

Christian Healthcare Ministries, Inc.

Website

https://chministries.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1981

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Christian Healthcare Ministries is a Barberton, Ohio-based nonprofit health cost sharing ministry founded in 1981 that pools voluntary monthly contributions from Christian members to share eligible medical bills, serving individuals, families, seniors, and organizations across all 50 U.S. states and internationally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Healthcare Cost Sharing

NAICS

Voluntary Health Organizations (813212), Religious Organizations (8131), Health and Welfare Funds (52512)

SIC

Hospital & Medical Service Plans (6324), Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAGAJAH

Faith-Based Healthcare Ministries (Hospitals, Clinics, Medical Missions)

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Religious & Faith-Based Organizations

SECONDARYBPAGAJAG

Faith-Based Social Services & Community Outreach (Food Pantries, Shelters, Counseling)

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Religious & Faith-Based Organizations

SECONDARYBPAGAJAF

Faith-Based Humanitarian Aid & Relief Ministries

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Religious & Faith-Based Organizations

Keywords

• Health cost sharing
• Faith-based healthcare
• Medical bill sharing
• Christian healthcare ministry
• Healthcare cost sharing ministry

Headquarters

HQ city

Barberton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Monthly Member Contributions: Members voluntarily pay monthly contributions (also called sharing amounts) based on their chosen program tier (Gold, Silver, Bronze, or SeniorShare). These contributions are pooled together and used to share eligible medical bills of fellow members. There are no network restrictions and members can choose any healthcare provider.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Christian Healthcare Ministries operates a faith-based health cost sharing ministry where members voluntarily contribute monthly amounts that are pooled to share eligible medical bills of fellow Christian members. Members choose from four program tiers (Gold, Silver, Bronze, SeniorShare) and can use any healthcare provider with no network restrictions. The ministry shares 100% of eligible medical bills and has facilitated the sharing of over $12 billion in healthcare costs since 1981.

Product overview

Christian Healthcare Ministries offers a faith-based health cost sharing ministry with four core programs (CHM Gold, Silver, Bronze, and SeniorShare™) designed for different life stages. Gold provides the most comprehensive coverage with scheduled pre-existing condition sharing over three years, while Silver and Bronze offer more affordable options with pre-existing conditions handled through CHM Give. The add-on CHM Plus enhances any program with catastrophic event protection, maternity support, and nurse navigation. Members access their accounts through the Member Portal (individual) or Group Portal (employer groups), both offering bill submission, payment management, and account access features. The organization shares over $600 million annually in eligible medical bills across its membership.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CHM Gold: Premium health cost sharing program with the highest level of benefits, including pre-existing condition sharing schedule
• CHM Silver
• CHM Bronze
• CHM SeniorShare
• CHM Plus
• CHM Give

Products and services

• CHM Gold CHM's most comprehensive health cost sharing program with the highest sharing limits and scheduled pre-existing condition sharing up to $50,000 over three years ($15,000 in first year, $25,000 in first two years). Designed for individuals and families seeking maximum coverage.
• CHM Silver Mid-tier health cost sharing program with moderate sharing limits and lower monthly contributions than Gold. Pre-existing condition bills are shared through CHM Give voluntary donations rather than a scheduled structure.
• CHM Bronze Entry-level health cost sharing program with the lowest monthly contribution and basic sharing for eligible medical bills. Pre-existing conditions handled through CHM Give voluntary donations.
• CHM SeniorShare Health cost sharing program tailored for seniors aged 65 and older, providing a biblical community solution for medical costs in retirement.
• CHM Plus Add-on program that enhances any base program with additional sharing for catastrophic medical events (bills over $125,000), maternity support including a $500 Personal Responsibility credit, and nurse navigator services.
• CHM Give Voluntary donation-based sharing program (formerly Prayer Page) that enables members to donate above their monthly contributions to help fellow members with maintained pre-existing conditions and eligible medical bills.
• CHM Member Portal Online portal for individual members to manage their accounts, submit medical bills, view sharing status, access account settings, and communicate with CHM. Supports Face ID and Touch ID biometric login.
• CHM Group Portal Online portal for group administrators to view active members, manage payments, access billing history, and handle employee forms and account settings for employer or organization-based enrollment.

Quantifiable outcome

• Satisfies $12+ billion in members' healthcare costs since 1981
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• HealthTapcoreTechnology or IntegrationHealthTap provides telemedicine video visit services integrated with CHM membership, allowing members to consult with doctors online. Video visits are included with CHM membership and take 15-30 minutes. Members can pick a doctor, book same-day or same-week appointments, and receive care plans including prescriptions, medication adjustments, refills, labs, or specialty referrals.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Altrua HealthShare: Faith-based health care sharing ministry offering individual and family membership plans; another smaller direct peer competing for the same Christian household segment as CHM.
• Liberty HealthShare: Faith-based health sharing ministry offering individual, family, and senior programs; directly competes with CHM in the same faith-based alternative-to-insurance category with similar monthly share structure.
• Christian Care Ministry (Medi-Share): Operates the well-known Medi-Share program, a faith-based health cost sharing ministry directly competing with CHM for Christian households seeking alternatives to traditional health insurance.
• OneShare Health: Faith-based health sharing ministry offering multiple program tiers; a direct competitor to CHM with a comparable Christian-values-based sharing model and similar tiered monthly contributions.
• Sedera Health: Non-faith-based health cost sharing community serving individuals, families, and employer groups; a direct competitor to CHM in the broader medical cost sharing category, though it removes the Christian-faith prerequisite.
• Samaritan Ministries: Biblical health cost sharing ministry founded in 1994; one of the largest direct competitors to CHM, offering similar faith-based member-to-member medical bill sharing with monthly share contributions.

Others

• HealthTap: Telemedicine partner that provides CHM members with integrated video visits; an ecosystem partner rather than a competitor, but materially relevant because the integration is a key differentiating feature of CHM's offering.

Emerging players

• CrowdHealth: Crowdfunding-based alternative to health insurance that pools member contributions to pay medical bills; competes for the same self-pay, uninsured, and high-deductible demographic as CHM but without the faith-based filter.

Broad incumbents

• UnitedHealth Group: Largest U.S. health insurer and a broad incumbent against which CHM positions itself on price (CHM cites average premiums of $805/$1,883 vs. its $341/$1,023); provides the traditional-insurance benchmark CHM uses to demonstrate savings.
• Kaiser Permanente: Integrated managed care organization that represents the closed-network, vertically integrated incumbent alternative to CHM's any-provider model; useful benchmark for the network-restricted approach CHM positions itself against.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/iheartchm

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Christian Healthcare Ministries