Iowa Farm Bureau health insurance plans ‘skimpy,’ analysis says
The analysis, released by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a
"The proposals' supporters at times invoke middle-income farmers as a key constituency for these more limited coverage options," the analysis states. "But this group does not represent the vast majority of farmers and farmworkers experiencing health insurance challenges.
"Most farmers and farmworkers who lack health insurance have low incomes, and for them skimpy plans would be inadequate and unaffordable."
About 4,680
Of those uninsured individuals, 57 percent make below 200 percent of the federal poverty level, or about
The
The plans are likely to be available for 2019.
These plans, which would be offered by
The plans also are not regulated by the state insurance commissioner.
The analysis names
In addition, Lueck said these plans also will draw healthy people out of
"The people who get subsidies are protected from those increases, but the people who don't get those subsidies, who have middle incomes or higher that want comprehensive coverage are going to have trouble affording it -- more trouble than they're having now," Lueck said.
In addition, several small businesses could join together to offer their employees health coverage.
However, Lueck argued these members just may not be aware of what financial assistance for which they qualify.
"When we're hearing people complaining and being concerned about the affordability of their health coverage, the solution isn't, 'Well, let's go make some insurance expensive for other people in order to give some groups of healthy people cheaper coverage that isn't as protective of them if they need it,'" Lueck said.
The analysis states these skinny options "won't solve health care affordability problems for most people working in agriculture, especially if they face illness or injury."
"You're creating a shadow market subject to a weaker set of rules," Lueck said.
"A person might be able to benefit in the short term if their healthy and their younger, but there's lots of people who are going to be hurt."
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