Common Ground IAF in Southeastern Wisconsin has a solution to skyrocketting healthcare costs: the formation of their own health insurance company: The Common Ground Healthcare Cooperative (CGHC).

Targeting small businesses, non-profits and individuals in the seven counties of Southeastern Wisconsin, the non-profit, member governed cooperative will launch January 1, 2014. The cooperative is funded with a $56 million loan from the federal government through the Affordable Care Act.

Non-profit means any surplus will be invested back into the company for the benefit of its members, helping keep premium costs lower. The organization focuses on working with doctors, hospitals, agents and members so that the best healthcare can be provided at a reasonable rate. A member elected board of directors will give participants a say in how the cooperative operates and – by keeping the books transparent – each individual will know exactly what their premium is used for.

Together the CGHC and Common Ground have initiated the process of enrolling 25,000 to 50,000 between 2012 and 2017.