Sally and I and perhaps many of you have been receiving endless mailings from AARP and other Part D providers because this time each year is when you can sign up for (or change) your Part D coverage. There are literally pounds of mail to sort through that "explain" all your choices. All. Your. Endless. Choices.
HICAP to the rescue. A free service of the Senior Advocacy Center of Northern California, HICAP (Health Insurance Counseling and Advocacy Program) is sponsored (I think) by United Way. HICAP is however NOT affiliated with any insurance company or agency nor does it sell or recommend any specific insurance.
You can call them for many valuable services including omsbudsman and senior legal advice at their Redding office, 800-434-0221. We already knew Debbie Weiland the Program Manager because she travels the five north state counties making presentations on their services and she had conducted several Medicare seminars for seniors here and in Weed.
But the big value for Sally and I was their new Siskiyou County volunteer Joan Favero, who guided us through the Part D maze and enrolled us in a new version that will save us a little over $1,100 in 2009. That's right, nearly $100 a month less than we pay now ($81.60 per month premium plus $25 a month each in co-pay for the one brand name drug we each take). We use the mail-order Rx plan with AARP's United Healthcare and we get a 90 day supply each time we order (although we can also still use the local pharmacy).
Joan pulled up a special comparison shopping program that she trained for on her computer and displayed for us 51 plans that we were eligible for. Then she ranked them by cost and we compared their features to be sure we weren't changing to a plan that used a deductible for example. The best one that fit me was $809 a year and Sally's best choice was $725. That's the total plan cost, premium, drug co-pay, and deductible (if any). We were each paying $1,387 per year so the savings are substantial. All this took just minutes.
Did I mention that she is a retired pharmacist and was able to not only pronounce but even spell our prescriptions which, if you take anything heavier than asprin, is an achievement for us common folk. I was having trouble with Omeprazole (can you blame me?) for example and all I could think to say was that the doctor prescribed it for acid stomach. Before I could blink she named off three major brand meds and mentioned Omeprazole as a generic for one of them. Bingo. (If you get an appointment with Joan save her the time though and bring a list of your meds).
December 31 is the end of the open enrollment period however so if you know anyone who is confused over Part D, give them Joan's name. An important point is that this happens each year so if someone's medical condition changes during the year and their prescription needs escalate they should review their Part D coverage and be ready to change during the annual enrollment window (Nov. 15 to Dec. 31 I think, but you'd better call). Joan is in Yreka at 842-3751.
What we appreciated beyond her pharmaceutical expertise though was that the review is a free service. It seems to me that a huge number of seniors must surely experience the same degree of mystification that we did with the mailed "explanations". It's just overwhelming. But they might not know about HICAP and Joan.
Please share this good news with those you love.
No comments:
Post a Comment