If you're on a health sharing plan and thinking about getting pregnant — or already pregnant — there's one thing you need to know before anything else: every health sharing plan has a maternity waiting period. No exceptions.
The waiting period ranges from 10 to 12 months, starting from when you join the plan. If you get pregnant before that window closes, your prenatal care and delivery costs will not be shared.
All health sharing plans require 10-12 months of membership before maternity costs are shareable. A vaginal birth costs $10,000-$15,000 at list price; a C-section runs $15,000-$25,000. After the waiting period, plans typically cover delivery minus the IUA ($1,000-$5,000). Zion and Medi-Share have the best maternity sharing track records. If you're already pregnant, ACA is a better option.
The Waiting Period: What It Actually Means
Here's the math most people don't think through before signing up.
Say you join Zion HealthShare in January 2026. Their maternity waiting period is 10 months. That means:
- Earliest you can conceive and have maternity covered: ~March 2026 (so birth falls after the waiting period)
- If you conceive in January: Your entire pregnancy — prenatal visits, ultrasounds, and delivery — falls within the waiting period. You're paying out of pocket.
This isn't a loophole or fine print. It's the core structure of how health sharing works. Members contribute to a shared pool, and waiting periods prevent people from joining specifically because they're pregnant.
Already pregnant? Health sharing is not a good option. All plans will exclude your pregnancy as a pre-existing condition. ACA plans are required to cover maternity from day one — and if you're pregnant now, that's almost certainly the better path.
Maternity Waiting Periods by Plan
| Plan | Maternity Wait | What's Covered After Wait | IUA (Your Share) | |------|---------------|--------------------------|-----------------| | Zion HealthShare | 10 months | Prenatal care, delivery, postpartum | $1,000–$5,000 | | Medi-Share | 12 months | Prenatal care, delivery, complications | $1,250–$10,500 | | Samaritan Ministries | 12 months | Prenatal, delivery, newborn care | $300/month share | | CrowdHealth | 10 months | Delivery + basic prenatal | Crowdfunded per claim | | Sedera | Varies by employer plan | Delivery, complications | $500–$3,000 | | Presidio Healthcare | None (TX only) | Maternity as actual insurance | Standard deductible |
What Does a Birth Actually Cost?
Before you can plan, you need real numbers. Here's what hospitals bill at list price, before any negotiation or coverage:
- Vaginal delivery: $10,000–$15,000 (average $12,000)
- C-section: $15,000–$25,000 (average $19,000)
- Prenatal visits (full pregnancy): $2,000–$4,000
- Newborn care (first 48 hours): $1,500–$3,000
Total typical pregnancy cost: $13,000–$22,000
Now let's look at what you'd actually pay with a health sharing plan after the waiting period.
Real Cost Scenarios After the Waiting Period
Scenario 1: Vaginal Birth with Zion Standard
- Hospital bill: $12,000
- Zion negotiates via Cigna network: $7,200 (typical 40% discount)
- Your IUA: $2,500
- Zion shares: $4,700
- Your total out-of-pocket: $2,500 + monthly contributions
Scenario 2: C-Section with Medi-Share Silver
- Hospital bill: $19,000
- Medi-Share cash negotiation: ~$11,400
- Your IUA: $2,700
- Medi-Share shares: $8,700
- Your total out-of-pocket: $2,700 + monthly contributions
Scenario 3: Samaritan Ministries (Peer-to-Peer Model)
Samaritan works differently — members send monthly "shares" directly to each other. For maternity:
- Submit your need to Samaritan
- They assign other members to send money directly to you
- Average maternity need funded: $8,000–$12,000
- Your share: $300/month base
Zion advantage: Because Zion uses the Cigna PPO network, providers accept pre-negotiated rates automatically. With Medi-Share and Samaritan, you often need to negotiate cash prices yourself — which can work well but requires more legwork.
Planning Your Timeline
If you want health sharing to cover your pregnancy, here's how to think about timing:
Step 1: Choose a plan and enroll Do this before you start trying to conceive, or at minimum 10-12 months before you plan to give birth.
Step 2: Mark your calendar Note exactly when your maternity waiting period ends. For Zion, that's 10 months from your enrollment date. For Medi-Share, 12 months.
Step 3: Time conception accordingly This sounds clinical, but the math matters. If you join Zion in March 2026, you need to conceive in late April 2026 or later for a birth to fall after the waiting period closes (March 2027).
Step 4: Document everything Keep records of all prenatal visits, test results, and bills. You'll need these for the sharing submission.
What's NOT Covered (Even After the Waiting Period)
Read the fine print on these:
- Fertility treatments: Not covered by any of these plans (IVF, IUI, medications)
- Elective C-sections: May be excluded or limited
- Genetic testing: Not typically shared
- Newborn complications requiring extended NICU: Covered separately; high costs can exceed sharing limits
- Birth control: Not covered
Comparing Medi-Share vs Zion for Maternity
These are the two most popular plans for families, so they get their own comparison.
| | Medi-Share | Zion | |---|---|---| | Maternity wait | 12 months | 10 months | | Network | None (any provider) | Cigna PPO | | Negotiation | You negotiate cash rates | Auto-negotiated via Cigna | | Faith requirement | Yes (Christian) | No | | Monthly cost (family) | $681–$1,215 | $560–$804 | | Coverage cap | $350,000/incident | $250,000/incident | | Maternity track record | 30+ years | 7 years |
For a healthy Christian family planning a pregnancy, Medi-Share's extra 2 months of waiting is a minor downside. Zion is the easier choice for non-Christian families and saves $100–$400/month.
What About Presidio Healthcare?
If you're in Texas and pregnant (or planning to be soon), Presidio is worth considering. It's actual insurance regulated by the Texas Department of Insurance — no maternity waiting period. You enroll, and maternity is covered like any other condition.
The tradeoff: $300–$600/month vs $185–$270/month for Zion. For a pregnancy happening within the next 10 months, that premium difference is likely worth it.
The Honest Bottom Line
Health sharing can work well for maternity — but only if you plan ahead. Join early, know your waiting period end date, and understand exactly what your IUA will be before you hit the delivery room.
If you're already pregnant, skip health sharing entirely. ACA plans cover maternity from day one, and you can enroll outside open enrollment due to a special enrollment period (pregnancy qualifies).
If you're planning ahead and have 10–12 months before you want to give birth, Zion or Medi-Share are both solid options that will cover most of your delivery costs minus your IUA.
Take our quiz to find the right plan for your family size and timeline. If maternity coverage is a priority, we'll factor that into the recommendation.
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