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Dedicated Insurance Professionals you know and trust...like Family |
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| Issue No. 42 |
August 20, 2013
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Health Care, Change and YOU
Health Care bringing about change.
How Does This Affect You?
1. Industry is readying itself for regulations
2. Employers are preparing to spend more money due to mandates
3. Are you an employer needing to limit expenses?
Education, Information and YOU.
TACT does its best to keep you updated, informed and educated as to issues affecting you. We invite you to visit our website for information and assistance. Health Care Reform information can be found by clicking here. Change is around the corner, but TACT stands in YOUR corner, ready to assist in any way needed. Take a moment, www.txagcoop.com . How can we help you?
TACT is in the BEST possible situation to thrive and provide outstanding benefits.
Now serving ALL of Agriculture -
Contact us for more information
TACT - Dedicated Insurance Professionals
you know and trust...like Family.
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Note from TACT:
Forms Now Available in Spanish
 TACT's Member Enrollment and Member Request for Change forms as well as TACT's Schedule of Benefit forms available by deductible selection are now available in Spanish and can be downloaded by visiting here.
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in the news...
Managed Care
Leading Health Plans Had Mixed Results in First Quarter 2013
August 13, 2013, Source: Fort Mill Times
According to a new report released by Mark Farrah Associates (MFA), most of the nation's leading health plans saw enrollment gains in the first quarter of 2013, but five of the seven top health insurance carriers reported a slight downturn in profitability year-over-year.
Wash. Rejection Of 5 Companies' Health Plans Draws Criticism
August 13, 2013; Source: Kaiser Health News
Critics say that Washington state's rejection of individual health-insurance plans from five companies that applied to sell inside the newly created exchange marketplace will limit consumer choices and hurt continuity of care for those with low incomes.
Consumer Driven Health Care
Obamacare: People With Disabilities Face Complex Choices
August 13, 2013, Source: NPR
The Affordable Care Act has set new standards - called - outlining what.
Low-Premium, High-Deductible Health Plans are Endangered by Affordable Care Act
August 12, 2013, Source: The Washington Post
Rod Coons and Florence Peace pay $403 a month for a family health plan that covers barely any medical care for either of them until he or she reaches up to $10,000 in claims in a given year.
Hospitals
New Laws and Rising Costs Create a Surge of Supersizing Hospitals
August 12, 2013, Source: The New York Times
Hospitals across the nation are being swept up in the biggest wave of mergers since the 1990s, a development that is creating giant hospital systems that could one day dominate American health care and drive up costs.
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National Health Center Week Recognized August 11 - 17
For more than 45 years, community health centers have delivered comprehensive, high-quality preventive and primary health care to patients regardless of their ability to pay. During that time, community health centers have become the essential primary care medical home for millions of Americans, including some of the nation's most vulnerable populations.
With a proven track record of success, community health centers have played an essential role in national recovery and reinvestment efforts and will play a key role in implementation of the Affordable Care Act.
Statement by HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.
"Open enrollment in the new Health Insurance Marketplace begins October 1. We recently awarded $150 million to nearly 1,200 health center grantees across the country to help them reach uninsured Americans and get them signed up for coverage in the new Marketplace.
"We know that just because people have the opportunity to get new coverage - whether through the Marketplace or Medicaid expansion - doesn't mean they know about it. Health centers are uniquely positioned to contribute to our educational and outreach efforts so that millions more people can get the security that affordable, quality health coverage provides.
"During National Health Week and beyond, we celebrate the special role that community health centers play in the nation's well-being and public health."
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Farm Bill Update:
Nutrition Issues -
In an interview August 12, with K-101-FM radio, Woodward, Okla., House Ag Committee Chairman Frank Lucas (R., Okla.) addressed issues associated with the Farm Bill.
With respect to nutrition issues and the SNAP program (foods stamps), Chairman Lucas noted that, "On the floor of the House, language was added that said explicitly states can drug test food stamp recipients as a requirement if desired. There is also language dealing with convicted felons in really heinous crimes, a ban on using food stamps.
"And the thing that really blew up the other side was a workfare requirement. If you're able bodied and you don't have any dependents, you need to work, I think it's like 20 hours a month to qualify for your food stamps in some work program," said Lucas.
"The House is on the line that we're going to spend less money and we're going to make changes in all parts of the farm bill, so it may be a loud, wild conference committee meeting."
He added, "if we cannot pass the food stamp language,  we're going to conference on the 'Farm Bill Farm Bill' in September."
Read more here.
Read this and other agriculture news on
our Facebook Page!
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Sunscreen Myths
By Katrina Woznicki
WebMD Feature
The start of another school year is days away, but we are still in the season of summer and in Texas, temperatures still soar above 100 degrees!
If you are hazy on sunscreens and how to use them, your health could be on the line. Being out in the sun  without proper protection from ultraviolet light exposure can increase your risk for sunburn, wrinkles, and skin cancer. Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer in the U.S., with more than 3.5 million cases diagnosed every year.
There are two types of ultraviolet light: UVB, which causes sunburn, and UVA, which penetrates the skin more deeply and can cause wrinkles. Both UVB and UVA rays can lead to skin cancer.
Dermatologists Jennifer Stein, MD, PhD, of New York University Langone Medical Center and dermatologist James Spencer, MD, of St. Petersburg, Fla., clear up myths about sunscreen.
Myth 1: I can skip it
Myth 2: The SPF in my makeup is enough
Myth 3: All sunscreens are the same
Myth 4: A little will get me through the day
Myth 5: Face, arms, legs, neck, back - I'm set!
Myth 6: Lotions, sprays or stick sunscreens work differently
Myth 7: Last year's bottle is still okay
Get more details here!
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Refer Us!
Click above to learn more or
to contact the TACT office. |
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Facebook Feature
Find us on Facebook and access more detailed,
industry-related information.
Interact with us!
We're waiting to talk to 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
Kimberly Tullo-Holcomb
TACT Executive Director
Lubbock, TX
George Reed, Chairman
United Farm Industries
Plainview, TX
Gregg Allen, Secretary
Olton Grain Coop
Olton, TX
Bret Brown, Treasurer
Sunray Coop
Sunray, 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
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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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Healthcare Reform -
The Marketplace, The Law, You
 TACT does its best to keep you updated, informed and educated as to issues affecting you. We invite you to visit our website for information and assistance. Health Care Reform information can be found by clicking here. Change is around the corner, but TACT stands in your corner, ready to assist in any way needed. Take a moment, www.txagcoop.com. How can we help you?
Open enrollment for insurance is less than 100 days away! And, recent breaking news reports the Obama Administration offering a one year break to employers who were to begin offering insurance to their employees in January. As well, in
a major concession to business groups, the Obama administration unexpectedly announced a one-year delay, until 2015, in a central requirement of the new health care law that medium and large companies provide coverage for their workers or face fines. (access the stories in TACT's Archive)
The Health Insurance Marketplace is designed to make buying health coverage easier and more affordable. Starting in 2014, the Marketplace will allow individuals and small businesses to compare health plans, get answers to questions, find out if they are eligible for tax credits for private insurance or health programs like the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and enroll in a health plan that meets their needs. However, TACT, in the midst of such change, finds itself in a unique position of being able to offer the highest quality of insurance and service at the same great rates to which you are already accustomed.
States across the country are working to implement the health care law. States can apply for Exchange Establishment grants through the end of 2014. As we get closer to enacting some of the President's healthcare initiatives, the challenges are becoming clearer, as are some of the benefits. Texas Ag Coop Trust has always prided itself in providing the best health benefit plans to an underserved industry.
So, what does it ALL mean? How does it ALL affect you?
Give us a call! We would love to visit with you. At TACT, YOU own your insurance plan.
At TACT, YOU are our business.
TACT - Dedicated Insurance Professionals
you know and trust...like Family.
Next Issue: September 3, 2013
Newsletter Archives - click here
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