UPDATE ON MY CALIFORNIA RETURN

First and most important, I hope you’re all well and healthy and surviving the stay at home order without losing your mind.

It was my plan to head back to SoCal in mid to late May, but I see no way that can happen. First, I’m not willing to travel until the virus is so under control that there is little to no chance of infection and everything is opened up, and then there’s the coach: It is already past the service date and the closest place to have it done (Rush Truck Center) is 35 to 40 miles away. Again, until this is well and truly under control, I’m not even willing to take an Uber ride for a quarter of a mile, much less 35 or 40! Nor am I willing to risk going on the road when it is past its service date.

My hope now is to leave mid to late summer. If not, late fall / early winter. If the latter occurs maybe I can squeeze in a vacation in summer to Michigan and Wisconsin.

I guess I’m stuck experiencing the awful heat and humidity of the Houston area – something I hoped to avoid for as long as possible!

Other than going to the market and picking up takeout food for lunch, spending an hour or so on the pool deck and occasionally taking a scooter ride around the Strand, I am in the same boat as you: locked in my place under a stay home order. I have little to no work and man it gets boring.

HEALTH CARE SHARING MINISTRIES (HCSM)

Health Care Sharing Ministries (“HCSMs”) are organizations in which members often share a common set of religious or ethical beliefs and agree to make payments to, or share, the medical expenses of other members. HCSMs operate either by matching paying members with those who need funds for medical expenses or “sharing” health costs on a voluntary basis. HCSMs may present coverage in ways that look and feel similar to health insurance, but claim to offer an “alternative” to health insurance. HCSMs often cost less than health insurance. However, before you sign consumers up for an HCSM, there are some things you should know:

• HCSMs don’t guarantee payment of claims. That means that while they may share funds with members who have health needs, they are not legally required to do so.

• HCSMs usually cap what they will pay. This means that even if an HCSM will cover your treatment, the HCSM may stop paying once the treatment costs exceed a certain dollar amount, leaving you with the bill.

• Most HCSMs claim they are not insurance and are therefore exempt from state law. This is untrue. To the extent HCSMs are transacting insurance they fall under the jurisdiction of the Department of Insurance and must have a valid license in order to do business in California. Whether a particular medical service will be covered is completely up to the Sharing Ministry and what is covered can change at any time without prior notice. Most HCSMs do not comply with the consumer protections of the federal Affordable Care Act (ACA), like covering treatments for pre-existing conditions or capping out-of-pocket costs. If care or treatment is not covered, insureds cannot appeal for an independent medical review overseen by the State of California

• HCSMs usually don't have provider networks, so members may be charged full price by doctors and hospitals, rather than the lower negotiated rates charged to consumers who have insurance coverage.

• HCSMs may provide value to some, but they pose a risk to others because they often provide limited benefits.

• Under certain circumstances membership in a health care sharing ministry exempts members from the state individual health insurance mandate, but only if the ministry meets a specific a definition found in the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Many HCSMs do NOT meet this definition and therefore membership does not exempt individuals from the state or federal mandate.