Wisconsin farmers, small businesses benefiting from new health-care co-ops

摘要

Wisconsin is the first state to use the power of cooperatives to bargain for adequate, cost-effective health insurance for agricultural producers and small businesses. The concept of using group purchasing power to bargain for lower health insurance rates is not new. However, prior to the enactment of Wisconsin's landmark Co-op Care legislation, only large organizations had the ability to conduct these negotiations. Co-op Care extends those market concepts to help smaller scale businesses, includingfarmers and the self-employed. The Farmers' Health Cooperative is Wisconsin's first health purchasing co-op dedicated to farmers and agribusinesses. Its formation was made possible by the Co-op Care law. Like other co-ops, the Farmers' Health Cooperativewill be owned and governed by its members, who will be directly involved in future financial and benefit-package decisions. The initial cooperative board includes six producers and three staff members of the Wisconsin Federation of Cooperatives (WFC), the statewide advocacy association for cooperative businesses.