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Dedicated Insurance Professionals you know and trust...like Family |
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| Issue No. 19 | September 25, 2012 |
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Insurance
Ensuring Industry Service
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Greetings!
Ensuring diversity and excellence in the insurance industry, TACT's commitment to service is to ensure service levels to customers are the best possible, specifically focusing on quality and satisfaction. YOU are our business, YOU are our focus. It is our responsibility to keep you up to date on industry changes as well as TACT-specific changes that are of benefit to you!
In this issue of InTACT, please note that changes have been made to TACT's Medical, Dental and Vision plans. We think you will find these changes to be positive and of overall benefit to your coverage. Questions or concerns can always be directed to the TACT office. We are always happy to assist, ensuring overall quality of service to you - YOU are our goal. YOU are our business.
TACT - Dedicated Insurance Professionals
you know and trust...like Family.
Sincerely,
Stoney Jackson
Executive Director
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To Your Health
Dental and Vision Coverage Changes Announced
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TACT Direct Pay Dental -important update
From TACT: It is now mandatory that we have dependents social security numbers on all dental enrollment forms. Please take a moment to print and update as needed.
The DirectPay enrollment form as well as the DirectPay change form have both been updated. Both can be found by clicking here
TACT Vision Coverage-important update
From TACT: Effective October 1, 2012 TACT is changing vision plans to Ameritas/VSP
This change should be extremely welcome for TACT members. The VSP network is much broader than what is currently being used. We believe that the service will be superior and offer a worry-free experience.
The Vision Benefit Schedule form has been updated with all references replaced with Ameritas.
Please visit the "Vision Benefits Program" page here and print any necessary forms by clicking here.
Important Note:
An adjusted amount is now in effect for max annual limits on TACT Medical Plans. Please visit the "Medical Plans" section of the "Benefits & Plans" page. Note that the amount has been increased to $1,250,000.
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Diabetes Awareness
The vision of the American Diabetes Association is a life free of diabetes and all of its burdens. Raising awareness of this ever-growing disease is one of the main efforts behind the mission of the Association. American Diabetes Month® (ADM) is an important element in this effort, with programs designed to focus the nation's attention on the issues surrounding diabetes and the many people who are impacted by the disease.
Here are just a few of the recent statistics on diabetes:
- Nearly 26 million children and adults in the United States have diabetes.
- Another 79 million Americans have prediabetes and are at risk for developing type 2 diabetes.
- The American Diabetes Association estimates that the total national cost of diagnosed diabetes in the United States is $174 billion.
With Diabetes Awareness being one of the focuses of the months of September and October, we invite you to visit the American Diabetes Association website, www.diabetes.org
for education information as well
as ways to become involved in prevention. |
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Stoney - Walking the Walk
Stoney weighed in September 18 at 230 pounds. He is maintaining his weight now and hasn't added any inches! Even though he is weighing about 5 pounds more than his original goal of 225 he is still way below his weight back in January when he weighed in at 252 pounds. Stoney is very happy with this stability in weight and is happy and enjoying life! Stay tuned as he continues his transformation and join Stoney and begin your own weight loss transformation.
Note From Stoney:
Follow Stoney's progress on Facebook!
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Possible Cure for West Nile
Could Be Coming from
West Texas Hospital
 With the West Nile epidemic spreading some of you have asked us, is there a cure? Right now the answer is no but there is hope.
We did some digging and discovered that researchers working just four hours west of here may have an answer.
NewsWest 9 talked to a doctor at Texas Tech in El Paso who says their inching closer in creating a weapon to eliminate the West Nile virus in humans.
NewsWest 9 has reported that there is no treatment or vaccine for this disease, but a team of scientists at Texas Tech Paul Foster School of Medicine in El Paso say there could be light at the end of tunnel.
"We are trying to use a new technology, autoimmune interference, to double up a type of strand to treat west Nile infection," Doctor Manjunath Swamy said.
The process uses saRNA, which are molecules that can target a certain part of DNA replication, and tell the DNA not to recreate that part. This means that the West Nile infected strands wouldn't replicate, allowing the disease to die out with the old cells.
"This essential strand uses small double stranded RNA's that can go and specifically attack the vital genome," Swamy said.
He says the research is currently being tested in mice and has been successful but it'll be a while before it goes to human clinical trials. The cure is not a preventative measure but once you have the disease, their medicine will target and completely kill the West Nile Virus.
He also hopes the treatment will gain FDA approval and treat West Nile outbreaks. If everything goes as planned, he's expecting the treatment to be available within the next eight to ten years.
To see this article and to read more health news affecting you,
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Contact Us
Texas Ag Coop Trust
1802 East 50th St., Ste. 107
Lubbock, TX 79404
806-747-7894
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Texas Ag Coop Trust
Officers, Board of Trustees
George Reed, Chairman
United Farm Industries
Plainview, TX
Gregg Allen, Secretary
Olton Grain Coop
Olton, TX
Jim Turner
Dalhart Consumers Fuel Association
Dalhart, TX
Paul Wilson
United Cotton Growers
Levelland, TX
Cary Eubanks
Slaton Coop Gin
Slaton, TX
Dean Sasser
Farmers Coop Elevator
Levelland, TX
Bret Brown
Sunray Coop
Sunray, TX
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Texas Ag Coop Trust
is endorsed by:
Texas Grain & Feed
Association
Texas Cotton Ginners Association
 Texas Coop Marketing Exchange
Texas Corn Producers |
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TACT Joins Texas Tech in Celebrating Cotton Industry
The state of Texas is the nation's largest producer of cotton and farmers in the High Plains region, alone, produce on average 4.25 million bales per year. Perhaps even more significant, the Texas High Plains is the largest contiguous cotton patch in the world.
September 10 - 15 was designated as "Celebrate Cotton Week" with Lubbock-based Plains Cotton Growers specifically designating Saturday, September 15 as Family Farm Day! PCG recently teamed up with Texas Tech Athletics and 10 corporate partners, including Texas Ag Coop Trust, supporting the cotton industry to bring you the "Celebrate Cotton" Game with the Texas Tech Red Raiders hosting New Mexico, September 15. On that day, the importance of the cotton industry was on display at Jones AT&T through the familiar lens of an autumn Texas Tech football game.
Texas Tech receiver Austin Zouzalik, a Lubbock native, stated, "It is great to raise awareness because a lot people just take it for granted. It's even more important to focus on the local economy and especially locally grown cotton." - the purpose of both Saturday's game and more importantly Saturday's celebration.
"Cotton and Texas Tech are synonymous," Texas Tech Director of Athletics Kirby Hocutt said. "And we hope this game will serve as an educational tool for people all across the nation that in West Texas -We Clothe America."
"We work every day to make sure that people understand the importance of cotton to the local economy," Mary Jane Buerkle, Director of Communications and Public Affairs at Plains Cotton Growers, said. "Because it's not just Lubbock, it's everybody in the region too."
"Anytime we have an opportunity to tell thousands of people about cotton and how important it is in their daily lives is just tremendous. But what's even more important is the partnership between Texas Tech and the cotton industry," Buerkle said.
As part of the festivities, cotton was in abundance and found to be everywhere throughout the game, from displays at Raider Alley and around the stadium in promotion, special graphics and fun cotton facts during the game. Even cotton bales
were set, lining each entrance to the stadium, each bale with signage talking about what the cotton in that bale can make or how it impacts our economy.
COTTON FACTS:
One 500lb bale of cotton will make:
215 Pair of Jeans
249 Bed Sheets
409 Men's Sport Shirts
690 Terry Bath Towels
765 Men's Dress Shirts
1,217 Men's T-Shirts
1,256 Pillowcases
2,104 Boxer Shorts
2,419 Men's Briefs
3,085 Diapers
4,321 Mid-Calf Socks
6,436 Women's Knit Briefs
21,960 Women's Handkerchiefs
313,600 $100 Bills (U.S. paper currency is made of 75% cotton and 25% linen)
Stats provided by the National Cotton Council
Other stats:
- Cotton growers on the High Plains produce, on average, 4.25 million bales per year. That's about 2/3 of the Texas cotton crop, 1/3 of the nation's crop, and 4% of the world cotton crop!
- The Texas High Plains is the largest contiguous cotton patch in the world.
- Texas is the No. 1 cotton-producing state in the nation.
- While the fiber from cotton goes into denim, T-shirts, towels, sheets and much more, the seed can be processed to make cottonseed oil, which is used mainly as a salad or cooking oil. Cottonseed meal and hulls are used in the
feeding of beef and dairy cattle.
- Most cotton on the High Plains is planted in May and harvested in the fall, mostly in October and November.
- Each dollar generated from a cotton crop turns over an average of three and one-half times in the local economy.
Featured in the above photo - Congressman Randy Neugabauer who presented each sponsor with a miniature cotton bale wrapped in Tech's logo. The on-field presentation welcomed Texas Agriculture
Commissioner Todd Staples who welcomed all attendees. All was featured on the jumbo screen, making for a very proud evening.
Texas Ag Coop Trust was among presenting sponsors, joining:
Presenting sponsors include Plains Cotton Cooperative Association; United Cotton Growers;
FiberMax; NexGen; AgTexas Farm Credit Services;
City Bank; Lubbock Avalanche-Journal; Deltapine; and All-Tex.
Portions of this article are courtesy of Britton Drown, Texas Tech Athletics Communications
TACT - Dedicated Insurance Professionals
you know and trust...like Family.
Sincerely,
Stoney Jackson
Executive Director
Texas Ag Co-op TrustNext Issue: October 9, 2012 Newsletter Archives - click here |
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