Samaritan Ministries

Section X	Table of Contents	Section XII
XI. Advisory Opinions and Binding Decisions Although Samaritan Ministries staff are trained to be forthright in phone conversations, oral opinions offered by the staff do not constitute binding decisions. Members who call to inform us of their circumstances in order to discover if the need qualifies will be given an opinion—not a binding decision. Inquiries in writing explaining circumstances and medical procedures involved and specifically seeking a written ruling will be answered in writing and constitute a decision that will bind SMI. The routine submission of bills to SMI followed by SMI's standard "need status letter" will not be considered such an inquiry or ruling.