Take Action for State Health Insurance Assistance Programs (SHIP)

In any City, Municipality or County there are only two vulnerable populations: the very young and the very old. Fortunately, there are sufficient programs nationally to provide for the needs of our precious young children; unfortunately, funding for our senior citizens is being drastically slashed at both the federal and state levels.

Currently Congress will decide whether to continue funding The State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) for Senior Citizens. Throughout the United States, SHIP provides services to help seniors navigate through the oftentimes difficult social services network that is available to them. Many seniors are completely unaware of these services and when they are made aware of them, many of the forms and procedures associated with these services are difficult and confusing. Since 1992 SHIP services have been available to seniors, disabled individuals, their families and their caregivers. It has been estimated that over 7 MILLION MEDICARE BENEFICIARIES, benefited from this program last year.

Trained personnel have been available to guide them through the Medicare process and assist them in not only choosing the best health care insurance option for themselves, but also in many other services as well, such as abuse, fraud, and appeal procedures. The abolishment of this program would eliminate the ONLY PROGRAM that seniors and persons with disabilities, their family members and caregivers have that offers free, reliable, and unbiased benefits counseling. Due to the advances in medical science, people are living longer. It is estimated that 10,000 Americans are reaching retirement age EACH DAY; consequently, the need for SHIP services will increase each year.

Congress will be in session considering whether to continue funding SHIP services to seniors and persons with disabilities. Cheryl Maddox is the GeorgiaCares SHIP Coordinator for the River Valley Area Agency on Aging and Disability Services. She provides services to a 16 county area. She helps educate seniors and persons with disabilities on the many programs available to them.  She also assist them by providing Medicare compare with health programs that are beneficial to them and other cost saving measures. In 2013, Shameika Averett, who was the GeorgiaCares representative helped my 90 years old cousin in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, who could not afford all of her prescription medications, find a program that allowed her to get all of the medication she vitally needed.

Over the past SFY the Georgia Cares SHIP Program has:

• Provided one-on-one counseling to over 600 Medicare beneficiaries in their 16 county area of assignment.
• The GeorgiaCares staff has attended over 100 outreach activities; reached over 10,000 persons through group outreach and educational programs; individual interactions and media broadcasts.
• GeorgiaCares volunteers have dedicated over 1,000 hours of their time educating seniors/beneficiaries about the Medicare program.
• The River Valley GeorgiaCares program has saved Medicare beneficiaries over 8 million dollars with programs such as Extra Help for their Part D prescription costs and Medicare Saving Programs.

According to the National Council on Aging: “Approximately 10,000 Americans are becoming Medicare eligible each day- significantly increasing the need and demand for SHIP services. Counseling services are provided via telephone and one on one in person sessions in addition to approximately 98,000 public education presentations last year. One on one assistance provided by SHIP has grown from 1.2 million client contacts in 2005 to over 3.5 million contacts in 2014, almost a 300% increase.”

We have a VERY SHORT time frame to contact our Congressional House Representative to let them know that the SHIP program is essential to improving the quality of life for our senior and disabled citizens. PLEASE CONTACT YOUR CONGRESSMAN AND SENATOR AT THE FOLLOWING LINK: http://cqrcengage.com/ncoa/actioncenter. The following is an example of what you need to say to your elected representative:

“Dear Rep./Sen. ________, this is my request for you to continue funding for Medicare State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP).”

I will be having a Town Hall meeting on August 21 from 11A.M. – 12P.M. at the Columbus Public Library Synovus Room A in order to inform the community just how vital this program is to our senior and disabled population in Columbus. Representatives from the River Valley Regional Commission Area Agency on Aging will also be in attendance.

Thank You. I always say that if you are blessed with long life, you will be a senior citizen one day and need to rely on as many senior services as possible to maintain your level of living. Thank You for your support and until my next newsletter, may God continue to richly bless you.

Sincerely

Pops