McCombs Healthcare Innovation Initiative

Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare, the largest hospital system in Memphis, Tennessee, said it has suspended “court collection activities” over unpaid medical bills, days after an investigation by MLK50 and ProPublica detailed its relentless pursuit of debts held by poor people and even its own employees.

Nonprofit Christian Hospital Suspends Debt Collection Lawsuits Amid Furor Over Suing Its Own Employees — ProPublica Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare is reevaluating its policy after an MLK50-ProPublica investigation found that it had filed 8,300 lawsuits in the past five years, including against many of its own employees.

"On May 7, the Texas Department of Insurance said it would seek a cease and desist order in administrative court against Aliera for misleading customers into thinking they were buying insurance and blurring the line between the for-profit parent company and its affiliated nonprofit health-share ministry. The company countered members know exactly what they are getting.

Still, the similarities between traditional health insurance plans and the products Aliera promotes can be striking. Aliera’s website touts individual and family coverage that includes “primary care physician visits, pharmaceuticals, basic eye and hearing examines (sic), both in- and out-patient procedures, extended hospitalizations, urgent care needs, labs and diagnostic procedures.” Plans come in gold, silver and bronze, using the same metal designations as insurance plans offered under the Affordable Care Act’s exchange."

Buyer beware: When religion, politics, health care and money collide

Texas' Uninsured Rate Is Bad And Getting Worse. But Lawmakers Did Nothing About It This Session. When lawmakers ended this year’s legislative session, they had addressed their biggest goals: They tamped down property taxes, overhauled school finance