Health Insurance for Farmers

Statistics show that farm families are significantly more likely to be uninsured than non-farm families. This is mainly due to cost constraints, where the farmer is forced to choose between paying for insurance premiums and purchasing needed farm equipment.

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To add insult to injury, many farm families do not qualify for public insurance programs because they acquire excess income from farm equipment depreciation. Many farm families who do have insurance only opt for catastrophic events coverage as insurance premiums for farmers are typically higher, in some cases double that for insurance from off-farm sources.

Farmer's Insurance Rates in Crisis

The issue of rising uninsurance among farmers is a major concern for rural America, where the contributions of farm families make up the bulk of an agricultural state's income, such as that of Wisconsin. Because agricultural income fluctuates from year to year, sustaining insurance payments can be a real problem for farmers. Many farmers rely on insurance coverage from spouse employment, but for those without such options pay more than they can afford for individual, non-group health insurance or for out-of-pocket medical costs. Such costs can outstrip that for equipment, clothing or food. On average, farmers pay almost $9,000 a year for health insurance, compared to just over $4,000 for insurance purchased off-farm.

Wisconsin Farm Bureau Actions for Farmer's Insurance

In response, the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation is pushing for laws that will address access to affordable, comprehensive private health insurance for farmers as well as eligibility for state public health insurance through the reform of income tax calculations.

Farmer cooperatives are also a promising source of affordable health insurance in Wisconsin ever since the law allowed cooperatives to purchase group insurance for its members much like it has been bulk buying farm chemicals and fuel to lower the costs for individual farmers. The law, known as "Co-op Care" became first available in April 2007. Eligibility criteria under the program are between the ages of 18 and 24, a resident of Wisconsin, in an agriculture-related business, and must sign up for three years. Beneficiaries under this system see significant savings in insurance payments.

California Farmer's Insurance Actions

In California, steps have been taken to provide affordable health insurance, not only for farmers, but also for all other residents of the state. The California Health Insurance Reliability Act (SB840) established the "single payer" plan under the California Health Insurance Agency which combines the health benefits from both public and private health insurance programs. The benefits to farmers include:

• Lower premiums due to lower health care taxes, averaging $3,585 a year compared to the lowest amount of $7,500 previously
• Premiums proportional to payroll, and part-time workers will also be covered under a simple enrollment system
• Removal of the health insurance issue from labor contracts
• Elimination of health care paperwork

Whether other states will take the initiative as Wisconsin and California has will spell the difference between adequate insurance and potential disaster for American farmers.