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Age Spots - By Ruth Dockins
Medicare Bootcamp – July 23 in Cape Girardeau
My suggestion for people who are within a year of turning 65 is to go out and purchase a larger mailbox because you are really going to need one soon. When the insurance companies find out that you will soon be eligible for Medicare, they are all going to want your business. They will want to sell you a Medicare Advantage Plan aka Medicare Health Plan, or a Medicare Supplement policy aka Medigap policy or a Medicare Prescription Drug Plan aka Part D Plan.
With a Medicare Supplement you can choose from Plan A, B, C, D, F, F high, G, K, L, M, N. With Medicare you may have Medicare Part A, B, C, D. See the problem here? Many people get their “parts” and their “plans” confused. Sometimes I wonder if the government doesn’t do these little things just to keep us on our toes.
There are so many plans from which to choose and so many decisions to be made about your choice even after you pick a plan. I guess I shouldn’t complain because if it were simple then everyone could do it without any help from me, then I might not have a job. So right now I want to take a minute to thank everyone who has ever called me with a question about Medicare and also to thank everyone who will decide to call me in the future. I don’t want to put any pressure on you but my lifestyle depends on your calls!
Seriously, it does seem to get more complicated every year. There are four of us here at SEMO AAA (now known as Aging Matters) that work very closely with Medicare and get as much training as is possible just to help us stay on top of things and many times we still have to put our heads together to be sure we are giving the correct information.
We are going to hold a Medicare Bootcamp to share with you all the “ins and outs” of Medicare. Area Agencies on Aging all across the state are holding these Bootcamps. I’m not sure why they are so called unless it’s because it’s something you have to do to get to a better place in your life and it’s not going to be much fun! However, we are going to do our best to make it fun and informative for you.
You can consider this article as your “Greetings” letter. Your presence is requested at the Cape Girardeau Public Library, 711 N. Clark St. on July 23, from 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. We will present information about when to sign up for Medicare, penalties for late enrollment, and what is covered by each Medicare part. We’ll have information about preventative coverage that is now covered by Medicare, what the deductibles are for each part of Medicare and what a benefit period is. The enrollment period for Part D will be discussed plus ways to save money on these prescription drug programs. There will be plenty of time for questions and answers.
This “Boot Camp” is free but we need to know how many to expect so we can have plenty of handouts and of course snacks. Please call Jackie at 1-800-392-8771 to register. The deadline for registration is July 17. It’s time for you to report for duty!
