agriculture appreciation act

Governor DeWine has received two ag-related bills from the Ohio legislature that now await his action. Unless the Governor vetoes either bill, which is not expected, the new laws will affect healthcare benefits offered by the Ohio Farm Bureau and will formally add several "ag days" to the calendar.

The healthcare benefits bill

Senate Bill 100 proposes to allow certain organizations to offer healthcare benefits to its members without oversight by the Ohio Department of Insurance.  The bill passed the House and Senate despite opposition from a number of health care advocacy groups who fear negative implications for covered persons resulting from the regulatory exemption. 

The bill would apply to a “nonprofit agricultural membership organization,” defined as an organization that meets three criteria:

• The organization was incorporated in Ohio on or before December 31, 1919;
• Its purpose is to promote the interests of farms, and;
• It provides contractual healthcare benefit coverage exclusively to members of the organization and their families.

Under the bill, healthcare benefit coverage offered by a qualifying nonprofit agricultural membership organization is not considered to be “insurance” and would not be subject to Ohio insurance regulations if all of the following apply:

• The healthcare coverage is provided only to the organization’s members;
• The application for healthcare coverage and any contract provided to a member is in writing;
• The application for healthcare coverage and any contract provided to a member prominently states both of the following:
  • That the healthcare coverage is not insurance;
  • That the healthcare coverage is not subject to the laws and rules of this state governing insurance.

S.B. 100 would also prohibit a qualifying organization from marketing its healthcare coverage as "insurance" in any marketing materials, and it would allow the a qualifying organization to assume or reinsure the risks arising out of healthcare benefit coverage with nother company authorized to provide insurance in Ohio.

If the bill becomes law, it directly affects Ohio Farm Bureau, which meets the definition of a "nonprofit agricultural membership organization."  Ohio Farm Bureau recently began offering Health Benefits Plans to its members, and those plans could be exempt from insurance regulations under S.B. 100. 

Ag day designations

The Governor will also have an opportunity to act on House Bill 65, the "Agriculture Appreciation Act," which  establishes several official designations for Ohio:

• The first week of October as “Ohio Stormwater Awareness Week”;
• March 21 as “Agriculture Day”;
• The week beginning on the Saturday before the last Saturday of each February through the last Saturday in February as “FFA Week”;
• October 12 as “Farmer’s Day”;
• The week ending with the second Saturday of March as “4-H Week”;
• The first full week of August as “National Farmers Market Week”; and
• The second full week of November as “Ohio Soil Health Week,” to celebrate and raise awareness for the importance of soil health to Ohio agriculture and in honor of the birthday of soil pioneer and advocate David Brandt.

A somewhat rare result of non-partisanship in Ohio, the Agriculture Appreciation Act passed both the House and the Senate with unanimous approval.