COLUMBUS — Way back in 1947, the Tennessee Farm Bureau saw a growing problem: Many of its members, hailing from the Mississippi River’s rural farmlands to the bustling streets of Nashville and the slopes of the Smoky Mountains, didn’t have access to reliable health insurance.
In response, the organization launched what later became Farm Bureau Health Plans, which has grown into the largest private health coverage provider in Tennessee, offering a variety of plans tailored to its members.
That successful model inspired the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation to pursue health plans for its own members as traditional insurance remains costly and out of reach for many due to a complex system that rarely supports sole proprietors or small farm employers.
Thanks to Senate Bill 100, sponsored by state Sen. Susan Manchester, R-Lakeview, and signed into law by Gov. Mike DeWine on July 1, Ohio’s farm families are a step closer to accessing health coverage better suited to their needs.
“With health care costs continuing to rise, many Ohio farm families are having a hard time finding affordable, high-quality coverage, so they asked Ohio Farm Bureau for a better way and this is it,” said Bill Patterson, president of Ohio Farm Bureau, in a press release. “Ohio Farm Bureau Health Plans will provide quality options at competitive rates, meaning that the peace of mind of health care coverage is no longer out of reach for our members.”
The Ohio Farm Bureau expects to begin enrollment for its new health plans this fall, about 90 days after the bill’s signing.
OFBF has offered the Health Benefits Plan, specifically created for sole proprietors and small businesses, for some time. But the new law allows the organization to begin offering healthcare benefits directly to its individual members and their families.
Ohio becomes the 12th state to pass legislation creating such a program. The plans are designed to look and feel like typical private insurance.
“It’s a comprehensive health care plan that will account for everything from (wellness) visits to emergency visits to medical emergencies,” Ohio Farm Bureau’s Director of State Policy Whittney Bowers told Farm and Dairy. “You can have an individual plan or, if you have a family, a plan for your family and your dependents.”
Notably, the family plans won’t increase in cost with each additional dependent, a feature that mirrors other states’ Farm Bureau Health Plans.
Bowers said the program offers more predictability than ACA plans, which require members to estimate income annually, a challenging task for farm families with highly variable earnings.
“What some of our members have seen is that with the Affordable Care Act plans, you are picking your coverage every year and you’re estimating your income,” she said. “And then if your income bracket shifts because you had a good year or a bad year, you could ultimately be penalized for selecting the wrong income bracket because your plans are based on your income.”
She added that Farm Bureau Health Plans will be evergreen. That means members enroll once and don’t have to reapply each year unless they choose to change their plan.
“When you’re in, you’re in,” Bowers said.
Legislation, she said, was the only viable path forward for bringing the healthcare plans to fruition. The new law exempts OFBF from regulation enforced by the Ohio Department of Insurance, thus expanding available care to members.
“It’s not that we don’t want oversight from the Department of Insurance,” Bowers said.
“We have oversight with (the department) through the Health Benefits Plan, so we have a great relationship with them. But moving ourselves outside of that traditional box of what’s defined as health insurance lets us create a health care solution that is not traditional insurance.”
Importantly, since these plans won’t be considered insurance under state law, they’re not subject to the usual rules or consumer protections that apply to insurance policies.
That means in some cases, those seeking coverage may be denied or charged higher rates based on pre-existing conditions. The Affordable Care Act prohibits health plans from using a person’s medical history to determine coverage.
But Bowers said farm bureau members have been seeking something like this for a long time.
“Our members tell us, ‘This is one of the biggest hurdles for us and one of the biggest challenges that we would like to overcome.’”
Getting the bill signed into law, she added, was no small feat.
“As a grassroots organization, our members create our policy and that determines what we do every day,” she said. “Being able to get a bill introduced and passed in six months is a testament to our grassroots structure and our members who were talking about this at every opportunity.”
