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Don’t Be Afraid To Reach Out For Help

Question: Now that my spouse is in the hospital, and I may not be able to visit, who do I talk with and what do I ask? Answer: There are resources to work with. The first line of help is right there at the hospital or skilled nursing facility - the doctor, nurses and social workers. Social workers also can be care managers, and discharge planners. If you have questions about your spouse’s medical condition, don’t hesitate to ask these professionals. Their job it is to help you with this situation as your spouse’s condition changes. You can set up an appointment to speak with a ...

AARP United Healthcare Options Monthly Premium Costs Can Increase

Question: When will AARP United Healthcare Options monthly premiums increase? Answer: AARP United HealthCare Options each year about this time, sends a letter to all their enrollees informing them of the proposed rate increase to begin Jan. 1, 2021. This letter states that this increase has been submitted to the New York State Department of Finance Services, so it is not final. The formal announcement of the increase will come to by the end of October or beginning of November for a start in January 2021. In New York state the pricing for Medicare Supplement Plans (Medigap) are ...

Jobless And Social Security Benefits Can Be Collected Simultaneously

Question: Can I collect unemployment and Social Security benefits at the same time without getting into trouble? Answer: People who are 62 or older do qualify for Social Security benefits (SS). Full retirement is a different age for everyone who was born after 1938. This has been a gradual change based on your year of birth. For people born in 1955, their full retirement age is 66 and 2 months, but they may enroll in Medicare since they are turning 65, So we will use 1955 as our sample birth year. People born in 1955 turned 62 in 2017. This means that they could collect SS any time ...

Physical Activity For The Older Adult While Social Distancing

Physical activity is one of the most important things to help prevent the many health problems that come with age. Some health benefits of physical activity include improved thinking, learning, and judgement skills as well as reduced feelings of anxiety. In addition to weight management and ...

Five-Point Plan To Help Long Term Care Residents Announced

The New York State Department of Health and State Office for the Aging announced a five-point plan to help long term care residents and their families access services through the Office of the State Long Term Care Ombudsman Program, provide additional resources to residents and families appealing involuntary discharges, expand the ombudsman volunteer program, “reimagine” a multi-agency workgroup to enhance services, and provide up to $1 million in funding for long term care facilities to purchase tablets, webcams, headphones, or other accessories to help residents stay connected with ...

Keeping Cool In Hot Weather

NY Connects is an aging and disability resource center. We have people-specially trained operators working to understand your needs and inform you, connect you, work with you to get the help you may need during different events in life. The weather is not predictable — we have seen that snow in early May and high at the end of the month! Keeping cool can be just as important as keeping warm at other times of the year. There are services throughout Chautauqua County that will with disabilities in an enriched quality of life When it is hot it is important to be able to cool off. Many ...