Sponsor: Farm Bureau health plan would add coverage option for uninsured Ohio farmers

Sen. Susan Manchester testified before the Ohio House Insurance Committee that Senate Bill 100 would create a health coverage option for members of the Ohio Farm Bureau who lack affordable insurance.

Manchester said the bill would allow a self-governed, self-funded Farm Bureau health plan to be offered to members and that the plan would "be exempt from regulation and not subject to Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as the ACA, guidelines." She told the committee the measure includes an amendment requiring a written disclaimer that the Farm Bureau health plan "is not insurance and is therefore not subject to state insurance laws and cannot be marketed as such."

The measure is the Senate companion to House Bill 99 and, Manchester said, ‘‘unanimously voted out of the Senate.’’ She cited other states that use Farm Bureau health plan models, saying Tennessee has offered such plans since 1947 and serves more than 200,000 members there. Manchester told the committee that Ohio has more than 76,000 farms and that agriculture adds roughly $120,000,000,000 to the state economy and employs about 1,600,000 people. She said the Farm Bureau plan would provide "another option for farmers and about 678,000 Ohioans who are without an affordable insurance option."

During committee questions, Representative Jerrells asked about disclosures and whether consumers would understand coverage limits for high-cost conditions such as cancer. Manchester said senators amended the bill after discussions with the Department of Insurance and interested parties to make the non‑insurance status "abundantly clear" and to promote transparency between the Farm Bureau and consumers. She added the plan is intended for self‑employed individuals who do not qualify for ACA subsidies or Medicaid and said the plan would give farmers "another option" while they project their farm finances for 2026.

The committee received Manchester's sponsor testimony during the bill's first House hearing. No committee vote was taken at the hearing; Manchester's testimony concluded with the committee moving to the next agenda item.