Kreidler fines, orders Zion Health to stop selling insurance in Washington

Commissioner Mike Kreidler has ordered Zion Health to stop selling insurance illegally in Washington state and fined the company $50,000.

Kreidler’s office issued an initial cease-and-desist order in February of 2022. The final order was signed on December 19, 2023.

Zion Health, domiciled in Salt Lake City, offered and sold insurance in Washington without being authorized to do so by the Office of the Insurance Commissioner. The company also excluded coverage for pre-existing health conditions for two years and excluded coverage for termination of pregnancy.

“My office, and our state, has established standards that protect Washington’s consumers,” Kreidler said. “Our insurance laws and regulations are in place for a reason, and our staff works hard to address the companies that fail to work within that regulatory framework.”

Zion Health markets itself as a re-imagined medical cost-sharing model and admits it isn’t a healthcare sharing ministry as defined by the Affordable Care Act. It also claimed its membership program — which reimbursed members for medical expenses in exchange for monthly payments — did not constitute insurance, though Kreidler’s office disagreed.

Zion, as of October 2021, had enrolled a total of 984 members in Washington and collected a total of $1,196,652 from those members, while paying out $568,274 in claims.