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Issue No. 82
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March 3, 2015
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The local Chamber of Commerce in Levelland held a ribbon cutting ceremony Thursday, February 19, celebrating the relocation of TACT from Lubbock to their local downtown!
The location has changed, but the service remains the same. TACT reminds you that we are here to answer your health coverage questions and here to help manage your health and health habits! Visit our website to learn more!
You are a partner in health care decision making and you are partnered with a coverage
provider that is thriving.
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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Who? How? Get to Know Us!
Who is behind the scenes? How does it all get done?
 Anne Pinkert - yes, Pinkert. You recognize the name as belonging to TACT's Executive Vice President, but it is also shared by TACT's Vice President of Administrative Services. Yes, they are sisters-in-law - working together - working to serve you!
Anne joined Texas Ag Coop Trust in December but has actually worked alongside TACT in third-party administration since 2002.
"I began working with ICON, handling insurance claims in 1999 and was assigned as part of a team to handle TACT services shortly after. I was underwriting for a cross section of companies, but TACT and I sort of 'grew up' together," Pinkert said.
TACT's decision to make client services all-inclusive and in-house brought Pinkert to the TACT office, exclusively. "I feel like I sort of fell into the world of insurance," said Pinkert. "But, my responsibilities prior to joining the TACT team really has provided me with experience that allows me to utilize and touch every aspect of customer service with the Trust."
Pinkert handles vendor negotiation, utilization review, PPO contracts, ID cards, COBRA and that is just the beginning! In service to TACT members from the unseen vantage point, she explains, "I understand that those I look to for the purpose of handling our business are looking for the best possible fee for their service, but I, too, am looking for the best. I am looking for the best possible service along with the best price."
The responsibility of convincing non-participating providers that they will get paid for the service provided while profiting goes beyond money. "We are a self-funded MEWA and, that is actually desirable," she states. "The benefit to members is that services with TACT are all-inclusive and all in-house. We have stop-loss carriers who support us on the back side over risk per person. There is certainty that payment for service will be received with profit being part of the package."
To the member directly, Pinkert is often the friendly voice on the other end of the line handing customer service, deductible concerns, prescription issues and even network concerns. "My responsibilities definitely vary, but they all tend to intertwine," she stated.
The recent changes at TACT brought Pinkert to the Trust staff, but kept her in her area of familiarity. "I came from the administration and claims side with an already established relationship with TACT to working directly with member customers. There is no middle man anymore! Members find that the services provided are still the same, but the shift now allows more hands-on, personable service. I am happy to be a part of that. I am happy to be part of the TACT team."
 
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March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month
 Of cancers that affect both men and women, colorectal cancer is the second leading cancer killer in the Nation.
Colorectal cancer affects all racial and ethnic groups and is most often found in people age 50 and older.
If all men and women age 50 and older were screened regularly, 6 out of 10 deaths from colorectal cancer could be prevented. Communities, health professionals, and families can work together to encourage people to get screened.
Make a difference! Spread the word about strategies for preventing colorectal cancer and encourage communities, organizations, families, and individuals to get involved.
How can Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month make a difference?
We can use this month to raise awareness about colorectal cancer and take action toward prevention both at home and in the larger community.
Here are just a few ideas:
- Encourage families to get active together - exercise may help reduce the risk of colorectal cancer.
- Talk to people in your community about the importance of getting screened for colorectal cancer starting at age 50.
- Ask doctors and nurses to speak to people age 50 and older about the importance of getting screened.
Preventable. Treatable. Beatable.
Colorectal cancer screening saves lives. It is one of only a few cancers that can be prevented through screening; among cancers that affect both men and women, colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. The risk of developing colorectal cancer increases with advancing age. More than 90 percent of cases occur in people aged 50 or older. Building awareness is an important part of helping to increase screening and decrease mortality rates. Visit the National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable Website to learn more.
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HHS Invests In Enhancing Domestic Preparedness
Efforts for Ebola
Further progress in providing emergency funding for states and health facilities
Courtesy - HHS.gov
 The Department of Health and Human Services released a new funding opportunity announcement (FOA): the Hospital Preparedness Program (HPP) Ebola Preparedness and Response Activities. This funding opportunity will award a total of $194,500,000 to states and other grantees for Ebola health care system preparedness and response and the development of a regional Ebola treatment strategy.
This funding, in addition to the Ebola emergency funds that will soon be awarded through the Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) program, provides a total investment of $339,500,000 to enhance state, local and health care system preparedness for Ebola through the emergency appropriations passed with bipartisan support in Congress in December 2014. These funds build on gains that have been made in health care and public health preparedness efforts over the past decade through the HPP and PHEP cooperative agreements with states.
"I'd like to thank cities, states, and hospitals across the country and the public health community for stepping up and taking action," said HHS Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) Dr. Nicole Lurie. "We are building on the work we've already done and further investing in domestic preparedness to protect the public's health from Ebola, as well as boosting preparedness for many other types of health threats."
Since last fall, the United States has strengthened domestic preparedness and response efforts. State and local public health officials, with technical assistance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and ASPR, collaborated with hospital officials across the U.S. to increase domestic capacity to care for patients with Ebola.
Important lessons were also learned during the response effort. Safety of health care workers must be foremost in health care system preparedness and response activities; the care of Ebola patients is clinically complex and demanding; and early case recognition is critical for preventing spread and improving outcomes. Assuring that Ebola patients are safely and well cared for in the U.S. health care system and that frontline providers are trained to recognize and isolate a person with suspected Ebola are the cornerstones of the Hospital Preparedness Program Ebola funding announcement.
Through the Hospital Preparedness Program Ebola funding announcement, HHS seeks to build upon the tiered approach outlined in HHS' Interim Guidance for U.S. Hospital Preparedness for Patients under Investigation or with Confirmed Ebola Virus Disease: A Framework for a Tiered Approach, to establish a nationwide, regional treatment network for Ebola and other infectious diseases. This approach balances geographic need, differences in institutional capabilities, and accounts for the potential risk of needing to care for an Ebola patient. It builds on Congress' call for a regional strategy and also recognizes the tremendous work done by cities, states and hospitals. This network will consist of:
- Up to ten regional Ebola and other special pathogen treatment centers, including one hospital in each of the ten HHS regions from among those that have already been designated by their state health officials to serve as Ebola Treatment Centers and have been assessed by CDC-led Rapid Ebola Preparedness (REP) teams. These facilities will have enhanced capabilities to receive a confirmed Ebola patient.
- State or jurisdiction Ebola Treatment Centers that can safely care for patients with Ebola as needed.
- Assessment hospitals that can safely receive and isolate a person under investigation for Ebola and care for the person until an Ebola diagnosis can be confirmed or ruled out and until discharge or transfer are completed.
- Frontline health care facilities that can rapidly identify and triage patients with relevant exposure history and signs or symptoms compatible with Ebola and coordinate patient transfer to an Ebola assessment hospital.
The Hospital Preparedness Program Ebola funding opportunity will provide funding to all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and select metropolitan jurisdictions to support health care facilities that are capable of serving as regional Ebola and other special pathogen treatment centers, Ebola Treatment Centers and assessment hospitals for their states or jurisdictions.
The funding will also support health care coalitions to prepare frontline hospitals, emergency medical services agencies, and the overall health care system. As with past preparedness grants, states and other awardees have appropriate flexibility in how funding is distributed to community-level healthcare coalitions and local jurisdictions.
Additionally, to date, four non-federal hospitals have cared for one or more patients with Ebola. Congress provided HHS with the authority to reimburse hospitals using Ebola emergency funding for the care of Ebola patients not covered by health insurance and workers compensation programs, HHS is developing the mechanism for that process.
HHS is the principal federal agency for protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services, especially for those who are least able to help themselves. To learn more the department's efforts to protect against Ebola, visit www.cdc.gov/Ebola and for more information on department's emergency preparedness and response efforts for all hazards see www.phe.gov.
Ebola Emergency Funding -- HPP and PHEP State-by-State Funding Allocations
Healthcare news such as this can be found on our Facebook Page!
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2015 Dietary Guidelines
Advisory Committee Submits Report
HHS, USDA now begin process of developing updated Guidelines; public comments sought
 The 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, a group of prestigious outside experts, submitted its recommendations to Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, in order to inform the 2015 edition of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
The Secretaries have released the advisory committee's recommendations report online, making it available for public review and comment. HHS and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will consider this report, along with input from other federal agencies and comments from the public as they develop the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2015, to be released later this year.
Dietary Guidelines
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans encourages individuals to eat a healthful diet - one that focuses on foods and beverages that help achieve and maintain a healthy weight, promote health, and prevent chronic disease. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) jointly publish the Dietary Guidelines every 5 years. Learn more:
Now Available
Scientific Report of the 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee
As announced in the Federal Register [PDF - 181KB], the "Scientific Report of the 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee" is now available. Individuals are encouraged to submit written comments to the federal government on the Advisory Report. Written comments will be accepted online through midnight E.D.T. on April 8, 2015.
The next edition of guidelines will be distributed in 2015. The public may submit comments on any topic. Find out more about how the recommendations for the 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans are being developed.
FURTHER READING:
Statement by Bob Stallman, President, American Farm Bureau Federation, Regarding the Scientific Report of the 2015 Dietary Guidelines
Advisory Committee
WASHINGTON, D.C., February 20, 2015 - "Science  must drive policy that feeds people all over the world, so we applaud the advisory board for its notable contributions to public health. We appreciate the breadth and depth of knowledge that they bring to the important process of refining and reviewing nutrition guidelines.
"We are, however, concerned that the report's lengthy foray into sustainability issues goes well beyond both the group's expertise and its clearly defined mission. Its conclusions would have benefited from the contributions of agronomists, animal scientists, ecologists and others with deeper expertise in agriculture and sustainability.
"The report makes many good observations about the need for a balanced diet, but we are troubled that it also repeats alarmist and unsubstantiated assertions about land use first promulgated by a UN agency with scant agricultural understanding. These assertions contradict the views of the UN's own agricultural experts and fly in the face of decades of scientific consensus. The overall guidelines also ignore easier and more effective ways ordinary Americans can reduce their carbon footprints.
"We suspect the report's unrealistically pessimistic view of sustainability colors its views regarding meat in the American diet. Instead of supporting the health benefits of lean meat consumption -- as previous advisory committees have consistently done -- the authors focus only on a diet "higher in vegetables, fruits, whole grains, low- or non-fat dairy, seafood, legumes, and nuts; moderate in alcohol (among adults); lower in red and processed meat."
"American farmers and ranchers pay close attention to their actions because that's good for the environment and their own welfare, too. We stand ready to help the administration make sure the world's most qualified experts are present when decisions affecting the food supply are made."
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Is it the Flu?
Courtesy WebMD.com -
When you wake up sneezing, coughing, and have that achy, feverish, can't move a muscle feeling, how do you
know whether you have cold symptoms or the flu?
It's important to know the difference between flu and cold symptoms. A cold is a milder respiratory illness than the flu. While cold symptoms can make you feel bad for a few days, flu symptoms can make you feel quite ill for a few days to weeks. The flu can also result in serious health problems such as pneumonia and hospitalizations.
What are common cold symptoms?
Cold symptoms usually begin with a sore throat, which usually goes away after a day or two. Nasal symptoms, runny nose, and congestion follow, along with a cough by the fourth and fifth days. Fever is uncommon in adults, but a slight fever is possible. Children are more likely to have a fever with a cold.
With cold symptoms, the nose teems with watery nasal secretions for the first few days. Later, these become thicker and darker. Dark mucus is natural and does not usually mean you have developed abacterial infection, such as a sinus infection.
Several hundred different viruses may cause your cold symptoms.
How long do cold symptoms last?
Cold symptoms usually last for about a week. During the  first three days that you have cold symptoms, you are contagious. This means you can pass the cold to others, so stay home and get some much-needed rest.
If cold symptoms do not seem to be improving after a week, you may have a bacterial infection, which means you may need antibiotics.
Sometimes you may mistake cold symptoms for allergic rhinitis (hay fever) or a sinus infection. If cold symptoms begin quickly and are improving after a week, then it is usually a cold, not allergy. If your cold symptoms do not seem to be getting better after a week, check with your doctor to see if you have developed an allergy or sinusitis.
What are common flu symptoms?
Flu symptoms are usually more severe than cold symptoms and come on quickly. Symptoms of flu include sore throat, fever, headache, muscle aches and soreness, congestion, and cough. Swine flu in particular is also associated with vomiting and diarrhea.
Most flu symptoms gradually improve over two to five days, but it's not uncommon to feel run down for a week or more. A common complication of the flu ispneumonia, particularly in the young, elderly, or people with lungor heart problems. If you notice shortness of breath, let your doctor know. Another common sign of pneumonia is fever that comes back after having been gone for a day or two.
Just like cold viruses, flu viruses enter your body through the mucous membranes of the nose, eyes, or mouth. Every time you touch your hand to one of these areas, you could be infecting yourself with a virus, which makes it very important to keep hands germ-free with frequent washing to prevent both flu and cold symptoms.
Is it flu or cold symptoms?
How do you know if you have flu or cold symptoms? Take your temperature, say many experts. Flu symptoms often mimic cold symptoms with nasal congestion, cough, aches, and malaise. But a common cold rarely has symptoms of fever above 101 degrees. With flu symptoms, you will probably have a fever initially with the flu virus and you will feel miserable. Body and muscle aches are also more common with the flu.
This table can help determine if you have cold or flu symptoms.
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Contact Us
Texas Ag Coop Trust
915 Austin Street
Levelland, TX 79336
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
Ag Producers Co-op
Sunray, TX
Ben Boerner
Texas Grain & Feed Assn.
Fort Worth, TX
Craig Rohrbach
Parmer County Cotton Growers
Farwell, TX
Dean Sasser
Farmers Coop Elevator
Levelland, TX
Tony Williams
Texas Cotton Ginners' Association
Austin, TX
Paul Wilson
United Cotton Growers
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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Our Focus Remains, YOU
- Positioned to offer coverage at steady/unchanging rates
- Coverage that serves an underserved industry.
- Concerened about YOUR company, YOUR business, YOUR needs
- Offering healthcare coverage along with vision and dental services
- Serving the underserved
MORE THAN JUST A HEALTH PLAN
TACT is in the best possible situation to thrive, provide outstanding benefits and help limit expense.
- You get more coverage
- You get a staff that works for you and with you - available to assist with no automation
- Ownership that comes with participation
With TACT, your need for healthcare is met! We are expanding and advancing and we want to hear from you! Obamacare is here. Are you covered? Do you have questions? Are you fielding concerns from employees and contractors? We have the answers you are looking for. We have the product to meet your need. And, best of all, we are Texas and we are personal. With TACT, you are our business!
What can we do to help you? What questions do you have? We are here to answer your questions.
You are a partner in decision making and you are partnered with a thriving coverage provider.
Keeping YOU the priority. Keeping YOUR NEEDS in perspective.
With TACT, YOU are our business.
TACT - Dedicated Insurance Professionals
you know and trust...like Family.
Next Issue: March 17, 2015
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