Nebraska Farm Bureau rolls out its own health plan

KEARNEY — Nebraska Farm Bureau has unveiled its own health plan.

The agriculture organization's chief administrator, Rob Robertson, said Monday in Kearney that Congress appears stalled on providing subsidies for the ACA "Obamacare" program, leaving farmers uninsured, so Farm Bureau has taken matters into its own hands.

"Everybody is getting shell-shocked," Robertson said about the high cost of coverage and uncertainty of acquiring a health plan. "Our plan will reduce premiums by 50% to 60%."

Robertson said the Nebraska Legislature approved the foundation of the Farm Bureau's health plan in 2023. The Nebraska plan is patterned after the program pioneered in Tennessee.

Although the Nebraska Farm Bureau's plan is similar to many insurance plans, Farm Bureau has been careful to label it as a health plan, not traditional insurance.

"The plan is like Nebraska — it's not for everyone," said Kelsey Sheer, who oversees the health plan for Farm Bureau.

"You must qualify for it, but when you do you're going to save a lot," she said.

Scheer listed a number of advantages, such as open enrollment year-round and substantial savings on monthly premiums of $800 to $3,900.

Dawn Kucera, a resident of Madison County in northeast Nebraska, said during Monday's Farm Bureau press conference in Kearney that she has been self-employed for 30 years.

During that time she watched as her health insurance premiums grew and grew.

"I felt like I was paying more and getting less," Kucera said about her health insurance costs.

"I am in the Farm Bureau system, and I can't be dropped," she said.

Robertson said that health care has become so expensive that farm families must take extreme measures to protect themselves from health insurance costs.

"In 25% of farm families, the wife gets a job so the family can get health insurance," Robertson said.

"As a farm family you look at all the numbers, and health care is a big number," Kucera said.

Robertson said unveiling the health plan involves just one of the major issues Farm Bureau members are tackling during their organization's annual meeting in Kearney.

About 300 are attending the gathering at the Younes South Conference Center. Among the major issues commanding attention are trade, property taxes and livestock growth.

"The closure of the Tyson beef plant in Lexington is a major disruption to the supply chain," Robertson said.

He said the Nebraska Farm Bureau consistently selects Kearney as the site for its annual convention because of the service, convenient location and large size of the facilities. He said the Younes Hospitality Campus is large enough to handle Farm Bureau's large gathering.