Newspaper Page Text
PAGE 4A
Seniors get schooled on Medicare
By Jennifer Sami
Staff Writer
With 18 insurance compa¬
nies and 42 different prescrip¬
tion drug plans available for
Medicare Plan D, it’s no won¬
der why some seniors arrived
as early as 4 p.m. for the
Medicare drug seminar at
Northside Hospital-Forsyth.
The seminar, which began at 6
p.m. featured Donald E. Poole
from Legacy Link Inc.
Legacy Link Inc. is a depart¬
ment within GeorgiaCares, a
Private-Public Partnership,
sponsored by the Department
of Human Resources Division
of Aging Services and Area
Agencies on Aging.
Poole, on temporary reas¬
signment from his normal
position as a lifelong planning
specialist, was recently com¬
missioned to help teach sen¬
iors about how to enroll in the
new Medicare Plan D, for pre¬
scription drug plans. For sen¬
iors currently on Medicare
Plan A or Plan B, the plan is
an option to receive prescrip¬
tion coverage from Medicare.
But for all senior citizens cur¬
rently receiving prescription
benefits from Medicaid, Plan
D will be replacing Medicaid
assistance. Any seniors cur¬
rently receiving prescription
coverage from Medicaid will
be randomly enrolled in a plan
automatically, which is why
Poole says it is so important
for seniors to choose their own
plan, based on their own
needs.
An estimated 100 seniors
attended the event, sponsored
by the Lanier-Forsyth Rotary
Club, Northside Hospital
Forsyth and the Forsyth
County News.
Medicare Part D Enrollment
Workshops
• Dec. 2 - Dawson County Adult Learning Center
Lanier Tech at 223 Allen St. in Dawsonville from 10
a.m. until 4 p.m.
• Dec. 9 - The Lanier Technical College Building
300 Room 362 in Oakwood from 10 a.m. until 4
p.m.
• Dec. 12 - Lumpkin County Adult Learning Center
Lanier Tech at 150 B Johnson St. in Dahlonega
from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Dec. 16 - Lanier Technical College Commerce
Campus from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m.
• Dec. 19 - Lanier Technical College Forsyth
Campus on 7745 Majors Road in Building A,
Room A-229 from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m.
• Weekly from Monday through Saturday at the
Legacy Shoppe in the Lakeshore Mall in
Gainesville from 10 a.m. until 5:30 p.m.
Bring a list of current prescriptions you are on,
information on current coverage, the name and
address of your local pharmacy, medical enroll¬
ment information and the out-of-pocket amount
you spend on prescriptions each year.
For more information, call (800) 669-9387.
Early Deadlines For
Thanksgiving Week
Because of the upcoming Thanksgiving
Holiday, Forsyth County News will alter its
Deadlines as follows:
For Thursday, November 24 paper:
Display Deadline Friday,
November 18 at 5 p.m.
For Friday, November 25 paper:
Display Deadline will be Monday,
November 21 at 5 p.m.
Classified Deadline will be Tuesday,
November 22 at 3 p.m.
For Sunday, November 27 paper:
Display Deadline will be Wednesday,
November 23 at 12 noon.
Legal Deadline for Wednesday, Nov. 30
Will be 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 23
Circulation times will be unaffected...
The Forsyth County News will be closed
Thanksgiving Day reopening Nov. 25
Forsyth J Your "Hometown CountyNews Paper" Since 1908 J
FORSYTH county news — Sunday, November 20,2005
“The article in the paper
was great, because that’s the
only way we knew about it,”
said Henry Chase, who attend
ed with his wife, Mary.
Poole used a PowerPoint
presentation to show seniors
who qualify for the plan, mini
mum coverage samples, nega
tive repercussions of not sign
ing up and best ways to find
more information.
“The information was very
well covered. It sounded like
lie knew what he was talking
about and he had all of his
ducks in a row,” said Chase.
“He’s working with the same
problem we’ve got to work
with — the federal govern
ment. That’s the whole prob
lem right there.
While information about"
the plan all leads to saving
money, Poole mentioned those
receiving food stamps, or a
rent subsidy might notice an
increase in rent and a decrease
in food stamps to balance out
the savings.
Many seniors who attended
the seminar were unsure if
they even qualified for the
plan, or if it would be more
advantageous to stay with
their current coverage. The
overall main concern was the
cost.
“Most of us here are on a
fixed income and take drugs,”
said Rema Martin. “We want
to know how much it’s going
to cost us, and if we’re making
the right move.”
“We think we understand
it, but we want to make sure
all of our questions are
answered and we make all the
comparisons we can,” added
his wife, Shirley.
Plan D is available for all
seniors 65 and older, currently
on Medicare Plan A or Plan B.
While seniors might not need
' prescription drug plan at 65,
a
Poole explained the conse
quences of not signing up for
the plan upon eligibility, refer
encing a one-percent penalty
per every month past original
eligibility. However, seniors
covered through work retire
ment plans, proof of coverage
will eliminate this penalty fee.
Poole’s message was clear,
Choosing a plan and under¬
standing all the information
and fine print is confusing, but
GeorgiaCares is taking an
active role in assistance. In
addition to Thursday’s semi
nar, GeorgiaCares, Legacy
Link and Northwest Georgia
Regional Development Center
have partnered to offer enroll
ment workshops throughout
November and December,
GeorgiaCares employees will
s •ii h
.
I
I
belk.com \
be on site to assist with plan
selection and online enroll¬
ment. The Forsyth County
workshop will be held at the
Lanier Technical College
Forsyth Campus, Dec. 19
from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m.
“There are 26,000 people
in the county who are 65 and
older and I want to say about
95 percent of them haven’t
made a choice as to what plan
they’ll be utilizing,” said event
organizer, Bill Hatley of the
Lanier-Forsyth Rotary Club.
For seniors needing to
enroll in Plan D, open enroll¬
ment began Nov. 15 and will
run through May 15. The 2006
open enrollment, and every
one thereafter, will run from
Nov. 15 through Dec. 31.
For more information and
enrollment assistance, call
(800) 6.69-8387 or visit
www.Medicare.gov.
. ;\ '
\ \
■ V, t ‘
§
-Si.
Photo/Jennifer Sami
Shirley and Rema Martin look over information packets
provided at the seminar. The married couple attended
the event to weigh their current benefits with AARP
United against the benefits Plan D would provide.