Ag News
CareSource invests $100,000 in farmer mental health programs
Posted on Oct 09, 2025 at 13:30 PM
During a press conference held at the Georgia National Fair on Oct. 2, CareSource, a nonprofit, managed care organization that offers comprehensive health insurance plans, announced it is making a $100,000 investment to help the Georgia Foundation for Agriculture (GFA) expand farmer mental health programs statewide.
CareSource’s investment will fund programs offered through the GFA, Georgia Farm Bureau networks and the Georgia Agricultural Wellness Alliance (GAWA) to deliver peer support, youth-focused wellness pilot programs, and community leader training designed to meet the unique mental health challenges farmers face.
“Georgia farmers feed our families and fuel the state’s economy, yet their own health and well-being are too often overlooked,” said Jason Anavitarte, senior director of strategic community partnerships and account management, CareSource Georgia. “Through this investment, CareSource aims to ensure every farmer has access to the care and resources they need to thrive.”
Georgia farmers face some of the highest levels of stress and isolation in the nation. A statewide survey conducted in 2022 by the GFA, the Georgia Rural Health Innovation Center and Mercer University School of Medicine found that 42% of farmers reported suicidal thoughts in the prior year, while more than 60% of first-generation farmers said they had considered suicide. Nearly 60% of farmers reported lacking access to basic medical care, and most said they could not access a psychologist either in-person or virtually.
Following the survey findings, the GFA led a coordinated effort to build long-term support systems for farmer mental health.
“Farm families face enormous pressures, from financial stress to weather, and too often that burden takes a toll on their mental health,” said GFA Board of Directors Chairman & Georgia Farm Bureau President Tom McCall. “Thanks to CareSource’s commitment, we can continue to build a strong, trusted network to ensure no farmer has to face these challenges alone.”
CareSource Senior Director of Strategic Community Partnerships Jason Anavitarte, second from left, & CareSource’s Georgia Market President Jason Bearden, fifth from left, presented a $100,000 donation to the Georgia Foundation for Agriculture accepted by GFA Board of Directors Chairman Tom McCall, fourth from left. Joining the check presentation were state legislators and officials who represent rural communities that will benefit from CareSource’s investment in the work the GFA and the Georgia Agricultural Wellness Alliance (GAWA) will do to address the mental health challenges facing farm families and rural communities along with partners including the Georgia Department of Agriculture, UGA Extension/4-H and Georgia Ag Ed/FFA. Pictured from far left are Sen. Larry Walker, Jason Anavitarte of CareSource, Rep. Robert Dickey, GFB President/GFA Chairman Tom McCall, Jason Bearden of CareSource, Rep. Patty Stinson, GAWA Director Dr. John McElveen, Rep. Angie O’Steen and Georgia Insurance Commissioner John King. / Photo by Jennifer Whittaker
CareSource’s $100,000 investment will support GFA to:
• Train hundreds of community leaders across Georgia in partnership with the Georgia Agricultural Wellness Alliance
• Launch Georgia’s first youth-focused mental wellness training programs in agriculture with 4-H & FFA members
• Build a stronger statewide safety net through trusted, local peer networks
• Equip counties to innovate while staying connected to a unified, data-backed strategy
“The mental health challenges farmers face are real and urgent, but with partners like CareSource, we’re building a stronger safety net for Georgia’s agricultural community,” said Lily Rolader Baucom, GFA executive director. “This partnership is part of a broader strategy to embed care into the daily fabric of Georgia’s farming communities by equipping trusted peers with tools they can use immediately. This partnership is helping ensure farmers have reliable support wherever they are.”
As farmers continue to navigate financial uncertainty, climate-related disasters and isolation, Georgia’s farm stress response has grown from a small coalition into a statewide movement to meet these needs. CareSource’s investment will help to further scale the work of the GAWA and GFA to reduce stigma and increase access to mental health resources for farmers. The Georgia Department of Agriculture and UGA Extension have also partnered with GFA to address farmer mental health issues.
“We need all hands on deck to increase access to quality mental health care for our farm families and rural Georgians,” said Georgia Commissioner of Agriculture Tyler Harper. “This collaboration shows what’s possible when Georgia’s agricultural community unites around a common goal. By transforming research into real world programs and infrastructure, Georgia is setting a national standard for agricultural mental health and creating a model other states can follow.”
After Hurricane Helene, CareSource contributed $40,000 to the Weathered But Strong: Georgia Hurricane Relief Fund administered by GFA to aid farmers who suffered damage from the historical storm that hit rural counties in Southeast Georgia from Valdosta to Augusta. This support helped provide essential financial assistance to 920 family-owned and multi-generational farms.
“We’re investing $100,000 to go towards addressing mental health and suicide prevention in our rural, farming communities because rural Georgia is the central nerve system of our state,” said Jason Bearden, president of CareSource’s Georgia Market. “It’s pretty scary out there for farmers right now. I think last year was a wakeup call with Hurricane Helene and the challenges rural Georgia faced. We got into the fight last year with a donation to the Weathered But Strong Campaign, and we’re going to continue to support the work the Georgia Foundation for Agriculture and its partners are doing to help farm families navigate the stresses of their livelihood.”
CareSource makes health care accessible to 430,000 Georgians. The nonprofit offers comprehensive health insurance plans including Medicaid, Health Insurance Marketplace and Medicare to improve its members. As a mission-driven organization, CareSource offers innovative programs that address social determinants of health, prevention and access to care. For more, visit www.caresource.com/ga/plans/.
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