Kaiser Permanente Bridge Program: Inexpensive Heathcare for Farmers 

By Ain Chiké  

Ain is a Farmer Providers Coordinator at Georgia Organics. She at present leads progress with connecting farmers to Kaiser Bridge Well being Insurance coverage and is the creator and supervisor of the Georgia Organics Apprenticeship Program.

Farming is inherently exhausting work and managing danger turns into a every day follow. Farm house owners who’re a part of the farm’s labor pressure can not afford to take days off because of sudden sickness or harm. The time away equates to lack of revenue and elevated medical payments. The identical is true of farm employees. In 2017, Georgia Organics partnered with Kaiser Permanente to carry metro Atlanta space farmers reasonably priced healthcare below the Kaiser Permanente Bridge Healthcare Program.

The Kaiser Bridge Program provides uninsured, low-income people and households with backed high-level medical health insurance. This program helps to “bridge” the hole for agricultural employees who don’t qualify for Medicaid and discover the month-to-month premiums of the Inexpensive Care Act burdensome.   

For the reason that program’s inception, Georgia Organics has helped over 50 farm house owners, farm employees, and their certified dependents obtain healthcare. Our farmers have saved 1000’s of {dollars} on surprising medical charges, follow-up care, and annual physicals. In some instances, members who would usually ignore a lingering ache, progressive cough, or twisted joint, had been capable of schedule a go to at a Kaiser Permanente workplace to obtain high tier medical care. This helped them get again on the farm in good bodily situation and prevented their illnesses from exaggerating.

Considered one of our Farmer Members, Hanna Brown, a fifth-year farm employee and present a part of the Love is Love farm crew, spoke about an typically ignored good thing about being in this system and insured when she acknowledged that

“…being part of the Kaiser Bridge Program has enormously improved my peace of thoughts. With as many healthcare issues that would come as a direct results of farm work, understanding that I might simply and affordably obtain healthcare has been an unlimited aid.” 

WHO CAN PARTICIAPTE IN THE PROGRAM? 

Eligible people: 

• Farm house owners, farmer staff (this consists of undocumented employees), agricultural contractors, those that work in forestry, these in a farm mentorship program, and so on.   

• Reside or work in Bartow, Butts, Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, Coweta, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Forsyth, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry, Lamar, Newton, Paulding, Pike, Rockdale, Spalding, or Walton counties of Georgia. 

• Meet annual or month-to-month revenue necessities of this system. 

• Keep membership with a Georgia Organics or SAAFON all through enrollment.

PROGRAM UPDATES

Previous members and people conversant in this system needs to be conscious that the protection restrict has been expanded past the earlier two-year protection rule.  

WHEN AND HOW TO APPLY

The upcoming open enrollment interval will start in Nov. 2023 and shut in Jan. 2024. Former two-year beneficiaries are inspired to re-apply by way of Friday, Sept. 15, 2023.

When you learn this text after the deadline, re-apply between Nov. 2023 and Jan. 2024 throughout the open enrollment interval.

New to Kaiser Bridge? E mail gofarmerservices@gmail.com to sign-up for open enrollment updates and be taught extra about this system for you and your farm staff.

Click on to be taught extra in regards to the Kaiser Bridge Program 

READY TO JOIN OR RENEW YOUR GEORGIA ORGANICS MEMBERSHIP TODAY? Discover the suitable membership stage for you at www.georgiaorganics.org/membership.

To be taught extra about Georgia Organics go to georgiaorganics.org or observe us on Fb, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube by looking (Georgia Organics).