06.09.20

Hoeven: USDA Working to Make Livestock Risk Protection Insurance More Flexible & Affordable

WASHINGTON – Senator John Hoeven, chairman of the Senate Agriculture Appropriations Committee and a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, today issued the following statement after the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) announced that it was advancing changes to make the Livestock Risk Protection (LRP) Insurance Program more affordable and flexible for producers of feeder cattle, fed cattle and swine. Specifically, RMA is working to implement the following changes for the 2021 crop year, beginning on July 1, 2020: 

  • Allowing premiums to be paid at the end of the endorsement period.
  • Increasing the premium subsidy for coverage levels above 80 percent. Those with an 80 percent or higher coverage level will get a 5-percentage point subsidy increase.

“Our livestock producers have been hit hard in recent years, including by natural disasters, cattle price disparities and the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Hoeven. “We appreciate USDA’s work with us to provide much-needed assistance to our ranchers, and these changes to LRP insurance are another good step. We will continue our efforts to address the needs of North Dakota’s producers and provide USDA with additional funding to do just that.”  

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