Can health insurance be consistently pro-life? Presidio Healthcare says yes

Meet Bob and Daniel

It’s easy to forget about the “faith” part of a leap of faith. The average person wants enough evidence to be reasonably certain that the jump will be safe before he scoots off the edge.

It’s fair to say that Bob Hogan and Daniel Cruz, founders of Presidio Healthcare, aren’t the average. 

When the two decided to found their pro-life health insurance company a year ago in April 2023, the first in the nation, it didn’t seem to make any sense. Bob was a lawyer with his fifth child on the way and Daniel was a successful actuary.

But they felt a call and followed it. And that leap of faith worked out — Presidio is launching this July.

Where It Started

Bob and Daniel were both working in the healthcare field when they met through a men’s group at their Catholic parish.

But when one of Daniel’s clients asked him to price abortions, it was a turning point. It was a reminder — when you pay for healthcare you don’t control where your money goes, including towards things you don’t believe in.

Looking for alternatives that aligned with his morals, Daniel researched healthcare sharing ministries (HCSM). An HCSM is a group of members who share ethical or religious beliefs and choose to share medical expenses among the group rather than pay for traditional health insurance that doesn’t support those beliefs.

However, he soon realized that despite these organization’s good intentions, they aren’t the most sound financial choice for families. 

The Solution

Daniel wanted a better option for Christian families who support a consistent pro-life ethic. So he decided to couple the values of health-sharing plans with the financial security and simplicity of traditional insurance. He just needed a partner to get started.

“When he pitched me the idea, it immediately resonated,” said Bob. “I knew from my personal experience that authentically Catholic healthcare is so beautiful and results in better outcomes.”

And, critically, a pro-life payor could dramatically impact healthcare in the United States, since it unlocks the economic incentives to promote a culture of life.

Together, they set to work building Presidio Healthcare. 

Getting Funding and Building in Community

Founding a company means long days and nights, the weight of constant decision-making on your shoulders, and the knowledge that things might not work out.

“It is incredibly vulnerable to be a founder — every little fissure of weakness is totally exposed, and you have to ask for so much help,” said Bob. 

Presidio found help through SENT.

“Bob and I, we’re both Catholics, we’re fathers, we’re healthcare professionals, we know our industry very well,” Daniel explained. “But when we started this, we had no idea that there’s actually a Catholic ecosystem of business leaders, of entrepreneurs, of investors, of people doing amazing things for the Church through their professional lives.”

They discovered this community the first week they started their company by attending the 2023 SENT Summit in Washington, D.C.

“As soon as we arrived there I knew that these were my people, these are people who are pursuing holiness and striving for excellence in business, these are people that wanted to integrate their faith into their work,” said Bob.

At the Summit, Bob and Daniel made connections with SENT members that would help make Presidio come to life. They met Charbel Simon, who helped them refine their pitch deck with his tried-and-true method that ultimately scored them their first institutional investor. 

More than just supporting funding, Bob and Daniel have benefited from being part of the SENT Network because of the support: having a trusted group to share problems with; brainstorming ideas with other industry leaders in their Healthcare Circle; and receiving expert advice from people to improve their business, all alongside brothers and sisters in Christ.

Since founding Presidio and gearing up for launch, Bob and Daniel have learned a lot.

“I’ve learned every business skill this past year as a founder!” said Bob. “But I’d say the most critical skills for founders are 1 organizational and project management skills and humility, if you can call a virtue a skill.”

And one of those in particular he’s learning as a SENT member.

“I’ve been so impressed by the humility of successful entrepreneurs within the SENT community — their single-minded devotion to holiness, and willingness to pursue greatness in business while also laying it all down and offering it completely to God,” Bob said. “I’m trying to emulate that every day.”

Over the past year, Bob and Daniel have gained the skills they need to make this mission go far. Their initial launch will be in July 2024 in Texas, but they have plans to expand to other states and marketplaces to bring pro-life healthcare to everyone.

Catholic Business Design At Work

“Fortress.” That’s what “presidio,” a Spanish word, translates to in English. Bob and Daniel, inspired by Saint Junipero Serra, who founded the first California mission at the Presidio in San Diego, chose this name to represent their mission “to help proclaim the gospel, heal the sick, and protect the vulnerable.”

Presidio tells their future customers, “We affirm the dignity of every person and believe that families deserve affordable, reliable healthcare. Presidio offers pro-life health insurance to help you keep your family healthy without violating your conscience.” 

And while Presidio is based in the Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services, what they offer is more than just following rules. They are dedicated to building and promoting the culture of life, covering non-traditional items like mental health services, fertility support, and home births. This means caring for the whole person, mind, body, and spirit, and looking to treat health issues at the root, not the surface.

SENT equips builders to design their businesses with intention and informed by Catholic principles. Presidio is an example of Catholic business design at work. 

Just take a look at their core principles: stewardship, subsidiarity, solidarity, and universality. By stewarding the sanctity of life, possessing freedom surrounding the choice of doctor, partaking in community, and resting assured that Presidio’s services are for everyone, customers benefit from distinctly Catholic principles that also uplift society. 

Key Takeaway

As Bob and Daniel get ready to launch this game-changing pro-life health insurance company this July, they remember that they didn’t get here alone.

When you build in community, you make strides not only toward your company goals, but towards infinite impact, supported by other faith-driven founders every step of the way.