Healthshares in Arizona — Why Healthy Families and Self-Employed Arizonans Are Making the Switch

Arizona has one of the fastest-growing self-employed populations in the country. Scottsdale, Phoenix, Mesa, Tucson, and Flagstaff are full of small business owners, contractors, freelancers, and remote workers buying health insurance on their own. If you’re one of them and you’re healthy, you may be overpaying by hundreds of dollars a month. There’s an alternative worth understanding. We explain the full model in our companion video.

Arizona Has No Individual Mandate

Arizona does not penalize residents for not carrying traditional health insurance. There is no state individual mandate. The federal penalty was eliminated in 2019. Arizona residents are free to explore alternatives to the ACA marketplace without risking a tax penalty.

What Is a Healthshare?

A healthshare is a medical cost sharing community. Members contribute monthly to help share each other’s medical expenses. It is not insurance. It’s not regulated like insurance. It uses different terminology — contributions instead of premiums, sharing requests instead of claims, and an Initial Unshareable Amount (IUA) instead of a deductible.

The healthshare model has existed since the early 1980s. Zion HealthShare, the one we’re affiliated with, has been operating since 2019. It’s a nonprofit, not faith-based, and open to everyone regardless of background or beliefs.

Why Healthshares Fit Arizona

Arizona’s individual health insurance market is expensive for people who don’t qualify for marketplace subsidies. A 40-year-old on an unsubsidized Silver plan can easily pay $700 or more per month. For a family, that number climbs past $1,500. If you’re healthy and you’re absorbing those premiums for coverage you rarely use, a healthshare is worth a serious look.

Zion HealthShare individual memberships start as low as $114 per month. Family memberships start around $295. For a self-employed Arizonan paying full price on the marketplace, that difference could put $5,000 to $7,000 back in your pocket annually.

Arizona’s snowbird and early-retiree population also fits the healthshare model well. If you’re under 65, active, and healthy, you may be carrying an expensive insurance plan that doesn’t match your actual usage. Healthshares allow you to right-size your healthcare spending.

Contractors and tradespeople — a massive part of Arizona’s economy — often go without health insurance entirely because the cost is too high. A healthshare gives them a structured way to handle major medical expenses at a fraction of the marketplace cost.

How It Works

You choose your IUA: $1,250, $2,500, or $5,000. When you have a medical need, you pay your IUA. The community then shares 100% of remaining eligible expenses based on the member guidelines. There is no annual or lifetime maximum sharing limit built into the program guidelines. No household pays more than three IUAs in any rolling 12-month period.

Preventive services like annual checkups are eligible for sharing without meeting your IUA first, subject to the member guidelines. Unlimited virtual primary care visits are included. There are no network restrictions — you can see any provider in Arizona or anywhere else. Some providers may ask you to pay upfront since a healthshare isn’t insurance. You then submit expenses for sharing afterward.

What It Doesn’t Cover

Mental health treatment and medications are not eligible for sharing. Members may access acute counseling through Primestin Care, an additional virtual service.

Pre-membership medical conditions have a phase-in period. Year one is a waiting period — nothing is shared. Year two, up to $25,000 per sharing request. Year three, $50,000. Year four and beyond, $125,000. The maximum resets each membership year.

A healthshare is not insurance. There is no guarantee of sharing. Sharing is voluntary and based on member guidelines and community funds. If you have serious ongoing medical conditions, traditional health insurance may be a better fit. Review the member guidelines carefully before enrolling.

See the Numbers

If you want to see what your monthly contribution would look like, visit our Zion HealthShare page. It takes about 30 seconds to plug in your household information. Zion also has a live chat on their site for specific questions.

And if you’re looking at a healthshare, make sure your property and liability coverage is right too. We serve homeowners, landlords, and business owners across Arizona. Learn more about our Arizona insurance services, or check out our Google reviews to see what our clients say. We also have videos on umbrella insurance and entities and insurance on our channel.