Medicare Awareness Campaign

SPEAKER 1: WELCOME BACK TO GOOD DAY KENTUCKY. OCTOBER 15TH MARKS THE ANNUAL ENROLLMENT PERIOD NAVIGATING THE BEST HEALTH PLANS OFFERINGS FOR YOU AND YOUR FAMILY CAN BE CHALLENGING, BUT THAT’S WHY IT’S SO IMPORTANT FOR CONSUMERS TO UNDERSTAND THEIR CHOICES AND WHETHER THEY QUALIFY FOR MORE BENEFITS. JOINING US TODAY FROM NEW YORK CITY IS NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED ADVOCATE, KAREN JONES, PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF THE NATIONAL CAUCUS AND CENTER ON BLACK AGING AND THE NCBA HOUSING MANAGEMENT AND DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION.
KAREN SHARES EXPERT TIPS AND INFORMATION ON DUAL SPECIAL NEEDS PLANS FOR QUALIFYING MEDICARE RECIPIENTS WITH FINANCIAL NEED. KAREN, WELCOME TO OUR SHOW.
KAREN JONES: THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING ME ON THIS IMPORTANT ISSUE.
SPEAKER 1: IT REALLY IS IMPORTANT. LET US KNOW AND LET THE VIEWERS KNOW, WHAT EXACTLY IS A DSNP AND WHO QUALIFIES FOR THAT DUAL PLAN?
KAREN JONES: A DUAL SPECIAL NEEDS PLAN IS AN ADDITIONAL PLAN TO, IF YOU ARE RECEIVING MEDICARE OR MEDICAID. WE FOUND OUT EIGHT OUT OF 10 PEOPLE WHO ARE NOW RECEIVING THOSE HEALTH BENEFITS, ARE NOT TAKING ADVANTAGE OF ALL THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES THAT THEY MIGHT QUALIFY FOR. FOR EXAMPLE, VISION TESTS, HEARING TESTS, DENTAL EXAMS, WHICH ARE CRUCIALLY IMPORTANT. UNDER THESE DUAL PLANS, IT’S A SUPPLEMENT TO YOUR MEDICARE AND YOUR MEDICAID. WE’RE GETTING THE WORD OUT. WE’RE DOING A NATIONAL AWARENESS CAMPAIGN SO THAT PEOPLE, PARTICULAR, WHO HAVE FINANCIAL NEED FIND OUT IF THEY ARE ELIGIBLE FOR THESE ADDITIONAL HEALTH BENEFITS.
SPEAKER 1: AWESOME, THAT’S WONDERFUL. NOW WHY SHOULD SOMEONE CONSIDER A DSNP OR A DUAL PLAN?
KAREN JONES: LET ME GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE. MY ORGANIZATION, WE HELPED A MAN WHO HAD NOT HAD A VISUAL TEST IN MANY, MANY YEARS. WE ENROLLED HIM IN A DUAL PLAN. HE NOT ONLY WAS ABLE TO GET A VISION TEST, NEW GLASSES, BUT NOW HE KNOWS HE CAN GO TO THE DENTIST AND GET HIS TEETH CHECKED. HE KNOWS NOW HE CAN GET A HEARING TEST. ALL OF THOSE THINGS ARE VERY IMPORTANT TO THE QUALITY OF HIS LIFE AND HIS HEALTH CARE. IF YOU’RE NOT TAKING ADVANTAGE OF THESE ADDITIONAL SERVICES, YOU’RE MISSING OUT AND YOU’RE LEAVING THESE THINGS ON THE TABLE. THAT’S WHY WE’RE ENCOURAGING PEOPLE, PARTICULARLY DURING THIS ENROLLMENT TIME. MEDICARE STARTS OCTOBER 15TH. WE WANT PEOPLE TO LOOK AT DUAL PLANS. IT VARIES FROM STATE TO STATE, SO WE’RE ASKING PEOPLE TO GO ONLINE TO GETDUAL.COM OR THEY CAN CALL THIS NUMBER: 855-799-3199, AND THEY’LL GET MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THEIR ELIGIBILITY AND WHAT ADDITIONAL HEALTH BENEFITS THEY’RE ELIGIBLE FOR.
SPEAKER 1: WHEN DID YOU SAY THAT PEOPLE CAN APPLY FOR THIS?
KAREN JONES: THE GOOD NEWS ABOUT THESE DUAL PLANS IS THAT YOU CAN ENROLL IN THEM AT ANY TIME. YOU’RE NOT LIMITED TO A SPECIAL ENROLLMENT PERIOD. THAT’S WHY THIS IS A GOOD TIME NOW TO GET IN TOUCH, TO FIND OUT WHAT YOU ARE ELIGIBLE FOR, AND THEN AS YOU ARE MAKING YOUR SELECTION IN MEDICARE AND MAYBE APPLYING FOR MEDICARE AND MEDICAID, YOU CAN INCLUDE THIS DUAL PLAN IN YOUR HEALTH CARE COORDINATION.
SPEAKER 1: CAN YOU TELL US AGAIN WHERE PEOPLE CAN LEARN MORE ABOUT DSNP OR DUAL PLANS?
KAREN JONES: YES, YOU CAN GO ONLINE TO GETDUAL. GETDUAL.COM. OR CALL 855-799-3199, AND THEY’LL BE ABLE TO GIVE YOU INFORMATION ON ELIGIBILITY AND ANY ADDITIONAL SERVICES OR BENEFITS THAT YOU MAY BE ELIGIBLE FOR.
SPEAKER 1: AND THAT WAS MY NEXT QUESTION TOO. ARE THE DSNP OR DUAL PLANS AVAILABLE IN OUR AREA?
KAREN JONES: ABSOLUTELY. THEY’RE AVAILABLE NATIONWIDE. IT VARIES FROM STATE TO STATE ON WHAT BENEFITS EVERYONE GETS, BECAUSE THAT’S THE WAY STATES DO. THAT’S WHY YOU NEED TO CALL AND THEY’LL BE ABLE TO GIVE YOU SPECIFIC INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR STATE AND YOU’RE ELIGIBILITY.
SPEAKER 1: KAREN, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS IMPORTANT INFORMATION. WE REALLY APPRECIATE IT. AND EVERYONE, YOU ARE WATCHING GOOD DAY KENTUCKY. KEEP IT RIGHT HERE.