BOONE, Iowa (DTN) -- Health insurance and healthcare availability have always been a challenge in rural areas and now Iowa-based agricultural solutions company, Landus, is helping farmers with health coverage.
"We talk to our farmer-members and the number one thing on their minds is health insurance," Molly Toot, senior vice president of administration & sustainability for Landus told DTN. "Farmers have historically had to pay as much as $4,500 per month for health insurance -- if they even have it at all. We wanted to find a way to help solve this challenge."
Landus Health and Conduit Health is an initiative available through Momentum Ag, a division of Patriot Growth Insurance Services LLC. This will provide comprehensive coverage through a nationwide provider network, ensuring healthcare is affordable and accessible for thousands of farmers across the nation.
Lucas Strom, president and founder of Momentum Ag told DTN medical inflation has outpaced total inflation for decades and become an even bigger cost to a farmer's operation each year. "Also, our healthcare system in the U.S. as opposed to most other countries in the world is an employer-based model. That works well for companies like Amazon or Walmart, but not for farmers," he added. "We, at Momentum Ag, become advocates for the farmers and find out what will work for each farmer. Then we provide them with options."
Landus Health and Conduit Health offer comprehensive coverage, at-home access to care, affordable program options, and a nationwide provider network. "This is a game-changer for farmers everywhere," said Dee McCune, health program project lead at Landus. "As a farmer myself, I know first-hand the challenges that many face in this industry. Through Landus Health and Conduit Health, it will now be easier than ever for farmers to have affordable nationwide coverage for not just themselves, but their families and employees."
THE APPLICATION PROCESS
Strom said any farmer can apply, if it's just for the farmer, the farm family, or farm employees. An application process must be followed, and the coverage is through open enrollment, available 12 months of the year with annual renewals. This will help farmers budget for the cost of the coverage to manage the insurance expense.
Another challenge for farmers and farm families is finding the appropriate healthcare when in rural areas where doctors are not always available. McCune said this coverage will help fill in the gap and save farmers time when it comes to meeting with a doctor because of the virtual option. Doctors are always on call and available to meet via a virtual link to help diagnose illnesses from afar. "This even offers Mayo Clinic and the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics as part of the network," she said. "To me, that is worth a lot, especially when something unexpected comes up."
Strom said Momentum Ag has helped give more than 500 groups access and availability to health insurance for over six years. Once a farmer has coverage, they will stay with the company at a high rate of retention.
"Farmers are used to managing their own budget and this is just another factor," he said. "We are continually trying to see how we can make changes to evolve with the times and provide a better program for those with the coverage."
Momentum Ag is just one option for farmers. Other organizations and groups offer similar options.
For more information and to apply, visit https://momentum.ag/….
Jennifer Carrico can be reached at jennifer.carrico@dtn.com
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