Medicare Part D Open Enrollment for 2010 begins on Sunday, November 15, 2009 and will go through December 31, 2009. During this time, insurance companies announce their premiums, deductibles, co-pays, andthe size of their Donut Hole coverage gap for the coming year. Medicare beneficiaries should take this opportunity to assess their current Part D plan to see if it is meeting their needs or if they need to switch to a different plan. CCHCC’s Medicare Task Force likes to use this time every year to educate Medicare beneficiaries in our community about upcoming changes to Medicare Part D for the new year and to advocate for our Campaign to Fix Part D.
This year, we partnered with the East Central Illinois Area Agency on Aging, the Illinois Alliance for Retired Americans, and Family Service Senior Resource Center to hold an information briefing on Part D Open Enrollment at the Champaign Public Library on Monday, November 16 at 10:30 am.At our briefing, we released a Part D Open Enrollment booklet to help educate local Medicare beneficiaries about what they can expect for their benefits in2010 and where they can turn for help during the Open Enrollment Season. Our Part D information packets will be distributed to several libraries and senior centers throughout Champaign-Urbana (including the Champaign Public Library) so that area seniors can easily access the information that they need for Open Enrollment.
At the press conference and in our Information Booklet we discuss:
- Changes to Part D benefits in IL for 2010 (average premiums, growth of the Donut Hole gap, etc.)
- Recent legislation passed to make state programs, IL Cares Rx and Circuit Breaker, available to more beneficiaries in the coming year
- Where local beneficiaries can turn for help in choosing their Part D plan and signing up for cost-saving programs
- How the national health reform legislation could help to improve Medicare Part D
- How local beneficiaries can get involved with CCHCC’s Medicare Task Force and take action to fix Part D
Community members sign in for the Medicare Task Force Part D Open Enrollment Information Briefing.
A packed room at the Champaign Public Library.
Medicare Task Force member talks about the importance of getting involved in the fight to fix Part D.
Medicare Task Force leader Anne Gargano at the Information Briefing.