Samaritan Community Praised By Galen Institute's Turner

Online, December 23, 2010 (Newswire.com) - PEORIA, IL-Samaritan Ministries offers "a unique way for people to protect themselves against the costs of health care," says Grace-Marie Turner of the Galen Institute in a new podcast interview on the Samaritan web site.

Turner joined James Lansberry, vice president of Samaritan Ministries and executive director of the Alliance of Health Care Sharing Ministries, and host John Creath in a discussion about health care reform in the wake of the 2010 elections.

"This (new) Congress is going to look at every opportunity to look at how this law is being implemented and to really put the brakes on," said Turner, who is president and founder of Galen's health and tax policy research organization. "They have a lot of tools, everything from defunding to dismantling it to looking at ways they can delay implementation and, importantly, delegating a lot more authority to the states."

While she and Lansberry mainly discussed the political ramifications of the changes in congressional power, Turner also lauded the opportunities that a health care sharing ministry like Samaritan offers. She especially praised the "community of support" that Samaritan members create.

Lansberry said the most important thing Samaritan members and supporters can do is "get on their knees."

"Most importantly, we need to be praying, because God alone holds the victory in this case," he said. "We know that God holds the hearts of the kings and of all the rulers in His hands and He can turn them whatever way he wishes."

Also in the podcast:

--Lansberry said Americans should be concerned if the individual mandate part of the new health care law is allowed to stand. It could be understood to mean that Congress has the power "to force Americans to purchase a particular consumer good," he said. But, he added, he is "pretty optimistic that the (U.S. Supreme) court is going to come down in favor of the American people and in favor of liberty on this."

--We'll see "more people expressing that they want control over their health care," Turner said, which is "what the whole battle is about."

--Lansberry encouraged people to be involved in local and state elections and to hold their representatives in government accountable.

The podcast can be found at http://www.samaritanministries.org/podcast/

Samaritan Ministries is a health care sharing organization founded in 1994. It includes more than 16,000 member households in all 50 states and around the world. For more information about SMI or to contact James Lansberry, call 1-888-726-4276, send an e-mail to [email protected] or [email protected], or view www.samaritanministries.org.

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For interviews, contact Mike Miller at (877) 764-2426, Ext. 142, [email protected]; or Elysse Barrett at [email protected] or call (888) 726-4276.