Out of curiosity were those the billed costs or the amount paid by the insurer?

Insurer knocked down about 2/3 of that, leaving about $600k for two kids. I doubt there's any insurance company offering coverage at the $686.82/year rate cited in the article, so it seems likely they're just pooling money and paying costs out-of-pocket, which'll probably mean they're paying full rate. (There are a few religious organizations doing this formally - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/1-million-americans-pool...)

East Wind pays $180/year per person into a fund held by communities that is much like the funds cited in that article, although relatively small. It's not insurance. It's a catastrophic health savings plan. It will pay (for people fully invested 2 years in the program) their costs beyond the first $5,000 for an illness or injury.