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Dedicated Insurance Professionals you know and trust...like Family |
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| Issue No. 51 |
December 23, 2013
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HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
from the TACT Staff and Board
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As more and more of the kinks in the federal government's Healthcare.gov website are resolved, you are still urged to take time making wise choices and make informed decisions.
Picking out an insurance plan isn't something to rush into, particularly for the millions who are currently uninsured.
TACT, in the midst of launched 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. We encourage you to field your options but allow us to help you understand them. Remember, with TACT, YOU are our business.
We wish you a very Happy Holiday Season and look forward to serving you in the new year ahead!
You are a partner in health care decision making and you are partnered with a coverage provider that is thriving amidst pending change.
Now serving ALL of Texas Agriculture -
Contact us for more information
TACT - Dedicated Insurance Professionals
you know and trust...like Family.
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Obamacare Coverage
Dealine is Today
Administration Says Latest Glitch Resolved
The Obama administration said last Monday it had resolved the latest technical glitch with the HealthCare.gov website, one that hit and prevented people from enrolling properly in new policies under Obamacare.
Everyone who has selected a plan from a private insurer through the Obamacare marketplace now should be in direct contact with an insurer to resolve billing and payment, according to the agency responsible for overseeing the website.
"Everyone who selected a health plan as part of their online application and enrollment process on HealthCare.gov have now heard from HealthCare.gov - from the health insurance marketplace - about the next steps that they would need to take for coverage," said Julie Bataille, a spokeswoman for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Officials revealed over the weekend that enrollment documents for some 15,000 applicants were not generated properly due to a technical problem.
HealthCare.gov received over 500,000 visitors as officials said they continued to improve the site following its disastrous October launch.
Consumers interested in purchasing insurance with coverage beginning January 1 have until December 23 to select a plan and then until December 31 to make a first payment.
In anticipation of increased enrollment in the run-up to this deadline, CMS is taking precautions.
"We have actively made sure that we have bolstered staffing plans, training resources and outreach information across the country as we think about the 23rd and also as we thing about people needing information to transition to coverage," Bataille said.
The agency is also in regular contact with navigators, in-person assisters and insurance companies to ensure all participants in the enrollment process have the most up-to-date information about the federal marketplace, Bataille said. Read more here.
RELATED NEWS:
Healthcare sign ups pick up, but may not close gap
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Obama's top economic aid postpones move as
website fix continues
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama's top economic aide Gene Sperling is postponing his departure from the White House for a month while his replacement, Jeffrey Zients, gears up for the new job after overseeing intensive efforts to fix the website used to shop for Obamacare health insurance, the White House said on Tuesday.
Obama had announced in September that his longtime adviser Sperling would step down as head of the National Economic Council on January 1, and named Zients, a trusted budget aide, as his replacement.
But in mid-October he brought in Zients to take charge of efforts to fix HealthCare.gov, the broken website at the heart of his signature health reforms.
The White House has said that Zients, who is a special adviser for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, will be replaced when he starts his new job. Zients' replacement has not yet been announced.
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Additional Reading
Twenty Three States Aren't Expanding Medicaid - Here's Who They Leave Behind
Courtesy, Washington Post, December 17
Twenty three states are currently not planning to move forward with the Medicaid expansion, which was meant to cover millions of low-income Americans. The population they leave behind is mostly young, minority, single adults, according to two new data briefs from the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Their analysis is one of the most in-depth looks at the population that falls into this coverage gap, too poor to qualify for insurance subsidies (those are available only to those who earn above the poverty line, about $12,000 for an individual). They're also shut out of the traditional Medicaid program, which tends to cover low-income parents, children and those with disabilities.
Kaiser estimates that approximately 4.8 million people will fall into this no man's land of health-care reform, where they do have the option to purchase private insurance on the individual market -- but would have to do so without any financial help from the government.
Three-quarters of those who will fall into this coverage gap are adults who do not have children. As Kaiser notes, this reflects the limitations on the current Medicaid program. While some states do use the publicly-funded program to cover low-income, single adults, that's the exception rather than the rule. Nine states currently offer coverage to adults, with income limits that range from 10 to 200 percent of the poverty line ($1,1490 to $22,980, respectively).
Most of them have jobs. Of the 4.8 million people estimated to be in the coverage gap, 2.6 million are working either full- or part-time. Among those working, half are in the agriculture industry. Most work for businesses with fewer than 100 employees, which tend to be less likely to offer insurance coverage.
They skew younger and healthier. Half are under 35; three-quarters describe themselves as being in good, very good or excellent health.
If there's any silver lining to this data set, it does suggest that those in the Medicaid gap are, from their self-reporting, in better health and potentially in less need of health care. That obviously doesn't protect against catastrophic events that have little to do with an individual's current health. The health-care law was supposed to offer such protection, but -- for these millions of Americans -- now it won't.
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By James Chandler, Texas A&M Horticulture Dept.
 Texas has an excellent potential in the Christmas Tree market because of population. In 1982, the estimated population was 15.3 million and the approximate number of households was 4.7 million. For this reason, northern and western Christmas tree growers ship truckloads of trees into the state each year. Texas growers have captured a portion of this market by supplying well-formed, fresh trees at a competitive price. Texas Christmas tree production can be profitable but requires time and long-term, financial investment for intensive cultural management practices to produce high-quality
Christmas trees.
Tree Variety
Virginia pine(Pinus virginia) is the major Christmas tree species for the acidic soils found in East Texas. A grower can produce a 6- to 8-foot Virginia pine Christmas tree in 3 to 5 years, depending on soil and climatic conditions. Two sources of seedlingsare the Texas Christmas Tree Growers Association and the Texas Forest Service.
Afghan pine (Pinus eldarica) is the major Christmas tree species for the alkaline soils found in South Central and West Texas. Growth rate of this pine variety is very similar to Virginia pine. Planting stock for Afghan pine is available from several commercial source.
Other tree species planted in limited amounts are eastern redcedar (Juniperus virginia), deodar cedar (Cedrus deodara), Arizona cypress (Cypressus arizonica), sand pine (Pinus clausa) and spruce pine (Pinus glabra). These are usually restricted to choose-and-cut operations which provide variety for the customer.
Preplant Procedures:
Many problems may be avoided by carefully choosing and preparing the planting site. Establish the Christmas tree plantation on the best site possible. Do not put iton land that would not be used for anything else. Major factors to avoid are poor drainage, inaccessibility and shading from mature timber stands.Site preparation is beneficial to early tree growth and development.
Management Procedures:
Christmas tree production is not a weekend business. It is not a venture for absentee landowners unless someone is available to work the plantation on a routine basis. During the growing season, daily attention is required.
A good example of regular work is insect pest control. An intensive insecticide spray program is an integral part of plantation work. Insects are more susceptible to control measures at specific times during their life cycles.
Soil moisture is critical the first year that seedlings are in the ground. In East Texas, Christmas tree plantations generally receive adequate rainfall for first-year seedlings if wee(I competition is controlled around trees. In South Central and West Texas, trickle irrigation systems are used on Afghan pine plantations.
Always control competing vegetation. Weeds compete with trees for available soil moisture and shade lower branches, causing sparse foliage in the lower portion of marketable trees.
Marketing:
Most Christmas trees are marketed when they are at least 6 feet in height. Growers may consider marketing choose-n-cut atthe farm, wholesale or through retail lots of their own.
If the Christmas tree farm is located in an area with a  large number of households, a good choose-n-cut operation can be established. Depending on the distance from neighboring urban areas, choose-n-cut farms sell trees ranging from $2.50 to $5 per foot of height.
By selling on a wholesale basis, a grower sells a bulk amount of trees at a lower price per tree, but it does not require dealing directly with the public. Wholesale only high-quality trees and concentrate on building future clientele.
In Texas, a 4-year period is generally required to produce a marketable tree. It is estimated that approximately $2,500 per acre is invested before the first tree is sold.
Click here to read about the history of the Christmas Tree.
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our Facebook Page!
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Timeless Holiday Health and Safety Tips
To see this and other health news,
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TACT Holiday Schedule:
In celebration of the Holiday Season, the TACT office will observe the following holiday hours:
Christmas:
Tuesday, December 24 - closed
Wednesday, December 25 - closed
Thursday, December 26 - closed
Friday, December 27 - opening at 8 a.m.
New Year:
Monday, December 30 - closing at noon
Tuesday, December 31 - closed
Wednesday, January 1 - closed
Thursday, January 2 - opening at 8 a.m.
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Refer Us!
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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
Jim Turner, Chairman
Dalhart Consumers Fuel Association
Dalhart, TX
Bret Brown, Secretary/Treasurer
Sunray Coop
Sunray, 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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SHOP Delay
What This Means for You
As announced by the Obama Administration on November 27, the Small Business Health Options Program, known as the SHOP exchange, will not offer online enrollment until November 2014, a one-year delay from a launch that was initially planned for this past October.
Small businesses buying coverage will still be eligible for tax credits to bring down the cost, according to the administration. Starting next year, small businesses can claim a credit of up to 50 percent of their contributions to premiums for insurance purchased through the SHOP, and the administration is telling business owners that buying marketplace plans through brokers, agents and insurers will count for that tax credit.
The setback was the latest in a stream of missed deadlines, including a postponement for a Spanish-language sign-up tool. The administration also recently pushed back the enrollment deadline for individuals: People who sign up by Dec. 23 can get coverage that starts on Jan. 1. In an earlier delay, businesses with more than 50 workers were given until 2015 to meet the requirement to provide health insurance without paying a penalty. And the deadline date for individuals to avoid penalties for failing to get coverage was pushed back six weeks.
The administration also announced a schedule change in next year's open enrollment season. It will start on Nov. 15, 2014, a month later than originally scheduled, and finish on Jan. 15, 2015, about five weeks later than originally scheduled. The midterm congressional elections are Nov. 4, and congressional Republicans accused the administration of shifting the dates for political reasons, to hide any spike in 2015 premiums.
The administration earlier had announced it will allow insurance companies to extend for another year coverage under individual policies that don't meet new coverage requirements. That move was a response to anger over a wave of more than 4 million policy cancellations.
What Does This Mean for You?
With the delay in SHOP, need arises. And, with need, TACT is readily available to serve facets of agriculture in need of health care coverage. With the scope of TACT's service now broadened and with the competitive market having widened, the ability to provide yields much to an industry in need and, too often, underserved. At TACT, our customers are our business - YOU own your insurance company. You have a say in your coverage and you help in keeping premiums, minimum. So, we ask...what does this mean for you? And, we extend the offer of, how can we help meet your healthcare needs?
What can we do to help you? What questions do you have? We are here to answer your questions.
TACT - Dedicated Insurance Professionals
you know and trust...like Family.
Next Issue: January 7, 2014
Newsletter Archives - click here
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The holidays offer a perfect opportunity for enjoying loved ones, celebrating life, being grateful, and reflecting on what's important. They are also a time to appreciate the gift of health. Support health and safety for yourself and others by following these timeless holiday tips.
