New Bedford Fishermen Health Insurance Help

Each week, Fun 107 teams up with Southcoast Health to bring attention to our local non-profit organizations. This week, the Southcoast Health Community Spotlight shines on Fishing Partnership Support Services.

Whether or not you’re personally connected to New Bedford’s fishing industry, we all benefit from this vital local industry.

Each year, nearly half a billion dollars is injected into our local economy thanks to the hard work of fishermen.

LISTEN: JJ Bartlett appears on Fun 107's Southcoast Health Community Spotlight

That figure doesn’t even account for the satellite industries directly linked to fishing such as ice production, rope manufacturing, marine mechanics, marine supplies and even food and beverage services. Thanks to these hardworking fishermen, more money circulates within our local economy.

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Many of us drive past the working waterfront every day, but it’s hard to truly grasp what life is like out on the open water. In the brutal heat and bitter cold, crews on these fishing boats risk their lives to bring seafood to dinner tables across the country. Yet too often, fishermen lack proper health insurance, leaving them vulnerable while working physically demanding jobs.

Fishing Partnership Support Services aims to help with that. J.J. Bartlett is the founding president.

"Fishermen have high rates of pain and injury on the job, but as you can imagine, they don't get paid if they don't work," said Bartlett. "On top of that, everything they do depends on forces beyond their control—like the weather, the fish they catch, government regulations, and the cost of fuel. That kind of uncertainty causes a tremendous amount of stress as well."

No Human Resources Department

There is no human resources department in the fishing industry. To fill this gap, Bartlett and his team have established local offices, staffed by members of fishing families. One of these offices is located on County Street in New Bedford.

"We serve about 30,000 families in New England alone," said Bartlett. "They’re there for fishermen after a traumatic event, like a loss at sea, and they provide trauma support."

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Gallery Credit: Michael Rock