Medicare Sends More Funding to SHIPs for Counseling
Seniors as Open Enrollment Nears
$6.3 million awarded to state-based information
programs to help people with Medicare
Oct. 7, 2009 – With Medicare’s annual Open
Enrollment period just weeks away, CMS has sent an additional $6.3
million to State Health Insurance Assistance Programs (SHIPs) to help
senior citizens and other beneficiaries get more information about their
Medicare health and prescription drug plan choices.
Medicare's Annual Open Enrollment is from Nov. 15 -
Dec. 31
Each year plans change what they cost and what they
cover. The next general open enrollment starts on November 15, 2009.
During this time, people with Medicare can add, drop or change their
prescription drug coverage. They can also select a health plan for their
2010 coverage.
You'll find helpful Medicare tools and information
on this page. Use these resources to compare the cost or benefits of
Medicare health plans in your area.
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questions. Learn how to lower health care costs and stay healthy.
These final disbursements for 2009 – part of $49.6
million in total grants to States for their SHIP operations – fund
programs that use community-based networks to provide Medicare
beneficiaries with local, personalized assistance on a wide variety of
Medicare and health insurance topics.
“We know beneficiaries want personalized assistance
as they make decisions about their health care options,” said Jonathan
Blum, acting director of the Center for Drug and Health Plan Choices and
director of the Center for Medicare Management.
“In addition to 1-800-MEDICARE operations and its
customer service representatives, SHIPs are one of the most important
resources available to Medicare beneficiaries.”
In grant year 2008, SHIPs reached approximately 5.2
million beneficiaries, caregivers and advocates. The SHIPs reported
that they are addressing more complex cases as well as trying to meet
the needs of diverse populations.
“In addition to answering beneficiaries’ questions
about Medicare, this funding should further the SHIPs’ efforts to reach
those people who are most likely eligible for extra help paying the
costs of Medicare prescription drug coverage, and assist them in
applying for extra help,” said Charlene Frizzera, acting CMS
administrator.
‘One of the ironies in all of this is that the
strongest critics of health care reform, and those most worried about
government involvement in health care, are seniors, who are satisfied
with their Medicare-provided health care’
“These funds will give SHIPs additional resources
for the upcoming open enrollment period.”
CMS distributed $35.8 million in April of this year
for basic grant awards.
This $6.3 million includes $4.8 million in
supplemental funding to the basic grant funding appropriated by Congress
for fiscal year 2009 and $1.5 million for performance-based awards to
SHIPs. Combined with $7.5 million in funding made available to SHIPs
under the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act (MIPPA)
of 2008, grants to States for SHIPs in FY2009 totaled $49.6 million.
Performance Awards are provided to SHIPs that
demonstrate achievement in providing services to Medicare
beneficiaries. Eligibility for a performance award is based on timely
submission of data for all required reporting periods into the SHIP
National Performance Reporting (NPR) system for the period July 1, 2008,
through June 30, 2009. SHIPs are also evaluated based on performance
measures data. Performance awards were started in 2006.
CMS expects the SHIPs to use the increased 2009
funding to conduct community-based programs targeted at reaching more
beneficiaries who are unable to access other sources of information such
as the CMS online tools at
www.medicare.gov.
In addition to continuing their outreach and
assistance to current and newly eligible Medicare beneficiaries and
their caregivers, the SHIPs are expected to make a special effort to
reach out to beneficiaries with limited incomes who may be eligible for
the “extra help” subsidy for Medicare prescription drug coverage. To
accomplish this, funds may be used to recruit new volunteers to provide
SHIP counseling, and provide them with training.
CMS will continue to support the SHIPs in 54 States
and territories with training and technical assistance. This will help
to ensure that the community networks remain fully capable of accessing
and using CMS’ 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), regional office
resources, as well as the online tools at
www.medicare.gov and
http://www.SHIPtalk.org to provide assistance to beneficiaries.
