Michigan Farm Bureau members have a real concern for their family’s good health.
We support:
- Requiring hospitals to report infection statistics.
- Legislation limiting malpractice liability awards, including capping malpractice settlements and strengthening licensing disciplinary action.
- Integrating delivery systems like community health, mental health and substance abuse programs, that serve the same set of counties.
- Increased suicide prevention and mental health awareness campaigns with funding and training for medical and emergency service providers.
- Assertive community treatment programs, like Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics, to serve, help, prevent, diagnose and treat those in need.
- A private and affordable health care plan that allows for additional benefits at the consumer’s option.
- Methods to reduce prescription drug costs that will best benefit all individuals.
- Health education to encourage consumers of health care to question physicians, hospital staff and administration about procedures and costs regarding their own health care.
- Itemized billing.
- Increased transparency for costs of all services.
- Insurance incentives for a healthy lifestyle.
- Health insurance premiums being 100 percent tax deductible for all policy purchasers immediately.
- Health Savings Accounts and Medical Savings Accounts.
- Medicare and Medicaid payments that cover expenses in full to hospitals. Rural hospitals should not be discriminated against by using a lower cost of living scale.
- An individual’s right to select treatment options which should be respected, and we encourage the use of living wills and/or Durable Power of Attorney for health care.
- Nurse practitioners, physician assistants, midwives, and certified holistic healthcare providers being able to receive reimbursement for their services from insurance companies, Medicaid and Medicare.
- Organ and blood donations.
- Programs that encourage medical professionals to locate in rural areas, including the U.S. Customs and Immigration Services programs supporting placement of foreign-born doctors in rural areas.
- The development of a method to return unused prescription drugs to a licensed pharmacist for disposal.
- Employers being exempted from mandatorily providing health care coverage to any employee who falls under the Migrant and Seasonal Workers Protection Act.
- The expansion of home and community-based long-term care.
- Local healthcare facilities be allowed to decide if they should remain open during both normal and emergency circumstances.
- All healthcare be considered essential in the event of a crisis or pandemic.
We oppose:
- State or federal programs requiring employers to provide health insurance for employees and their dependents.
- Taxes on an agricultural commodity to fund a health care program.