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Thank you to Good Samaritan Society - Northwood Retirement Community for their generous donation of $1,500 to the Meals on Wheels program. We could not do what we do without community support!
Ask SHIP (State Health Insurance Assistance Program)
Q: I have a Medicare Advantage Plan, and I don’t believe it is the best plan for me right now. I have missed the Medicare Open Enrollment. Is my only option to switch back to Original Medicare?
A: For years, the only time Medicare beneficiaries could change their Medicare Advantage Plan was during the Medicare Open Enrollment Period. This takes place every year, October 15 -December 7.
Starting in 2019, there’s a new Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period (OEP). It takes place January 1 through March 31 every year. It replaces the Medicare Advantage Disenrollment Period (January 1 – February 14).
Between January 1 and March 31 each year, if you are enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan, you can leave your plan and return to Original Medicare, and buy a Part D prescription drug plan to supplement your Original Medicare.
Starting in 2019, you also have the option to switch to a different Medicare Advantage plan during the first three months of the year. From 2011 through 2018, there wasn’t an option to switch to a different Medicare Advantage plan outside of the Fall Open Enrollment Period, unless you had a circumstance that allowed you a Special Enrollment Period.
Only one switch during this time frame is allowed each year — you can change your mind multiple times during the enrollment period in the fall, but can only switch to a different Medicare Advantage plan (or back to Original Medicare) ONCE in the first quarter of the new year.
However, if you sign up for a Medicare Advantage plan in the fall and then decide you don’t like it once it takes effect in January, you have until the end of March to make a change.
You can only sign up for Part D coverage during the first three months of the year if you’re switching from a Medicare Advantage plan back to Original Medicare. You cannot, for example, be enrolled in Original Medicare with a Part D plan and then switch to a different Part D plan during the January – March enrollment period. Instead, you’d need to make that change during the fall election period (October 15 to December 7).
If have any questions about the new Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period, Advantage Plans, or any questions related to Medicare, call SHIP at 1-800-452-4800, 1-866-846-0139 TDD or online at www.medicare.in.gov. You can also find us on Facebook and Twitter.
SHIP is a free, unbiased counseling program provided by the Indiana State Department of Insurance.
Your contribution can help your friends and neighbors continue to live independently in their own homes.
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Magazine Promotes Successful Aging
Generations Magazine is a free publication especially for active and informed adults that made its debut in the fall of 1998. Promoting successful aging for individuals in pre-retirement and retirement years, the magazine provides helpful information on a wide array of topics including health and fitness, caregiving and legal issues, investment and financial advice, and light reading to educational opportunities available through many outreach efforts and programs. Featured guest writers bring additional expertise and credability to the magazine’s professionalism and dedication to quality.
Generations Magazine is published 3 times a year and is sent to more than 5,000 subscribers. With advertiser support, we are able to provide the magazine free of charge to our readers. To be added to our mailing list, email your name and address to Linda Yochum at lyochum@vinu.edu or call 1-800-742-9002.
Or, If you would like to download the digital version of the magazine, click on the button below.
Please send all communications regarding the magazine to:
Generations, c/o Brenda Hancock P.O. Box 314 Vincennes IN 47591For advertising information contact Brenda Hancock at (812) 888-5146 or bhancock@vinu.edu
Privacy Policy: Your personal information is for Generations' use only. We will not sell any of your data to a third party.
Register HERE for the Aging Well Retreat - Passport to Aging Well on March 26, 2019
UPCOMING MATTER OF BALANCE CLASSES
If you are interested in attending a Matter of Balance class in the future and you live in, or near our six-county service area, please contact Alma Kramer at (812)888-4527. If enough interest is generated in an area, we will do our best to set up a class in that area.
The Alzheimer’s Association provides caregivers and families with comprehensive online resources and information Their professionally staffed 24/7 Helpline (1.800.272.3900) offers information and advice to more than 250,000 callers each year. Visit their website at: www.alz.org
The Support Group for Caregivers of Loved Ones with Alzheimer’s Disease and Other Dementia meets the second Tuesday of each month at 4 p.m. at Central Church of Christ (Fellowship Hall), 1600 Forbes Road, Vincennes. The meetings provide the latest information on Alzheimer's research and medications, help and encouragement from other caregivers and open but confidential discussions and a chance to be heard. For more information, contact Roger Wright, Support Group Facilitator, at (812) 882-7963 or centralccc@gmail.com.
Every Penny Counts.
For as little as $25 a month, you can provide a family in need with the peace of mind that comes from owning their own Personal Emergency Response System. For $50, you can give a caregiver what he or she needs most: an afternoon out of the house with the help of our respite care program. And for less than that, you can provide our clients with Meals on Wheels gift certificates, transportation tokens, and even one-of-a-kind Teddy Bears. The point is, your contribution can help our friends and neighbors continue to live independently.
To help us meet our mission and financial challenges, we’ve established the "Looking to the Future" endowment through the Vincennes University Foundation. In addition, donations may also be made to Generations endowment through the Dubois County Community Foundation, Huntingburg Community Foundation and Greene County Community Foundation.
If you're interested in learning more about donating to Generations, you may click the donation button on home page of our website, or give us a call at 1-800-742-9002. You may also donate by mail. Your tax-deductible gift to Generations may be mailed to:
GENERATIONS
1019 N. 4th Street P.O. Box 314 Vincennes, IN 47591
Generations is thankful for the financial support provided by United Way, Community Foundations and charitable businesses, organizations and individuals in our communities.