Jennifer Thaete

of

Abramson & Thaete, LLP

is

hosting the 2nd Quarterly Client Workshop of 2011!

We are pleased to present

Edward Clark, M.D.

&

Michelle Gilmore of Heartwood Health

they will be discussing the following topics:

• How to communicate to your health care agent what they need to know about your wishes in order to make good medical decisions on your behalf.

• What your health care agent needs to know about the medical world in order to be your best advocate.

The Workshop will take place on

Tuesday, June 14th at 7:00pm

Livermore Public Library

in Community Room A.

In order to ensure we have materials for everyone,

Please R.S.V.P to Jennifer Thaete=s office at

(925) 447-3322 by Monday, June 13, 2011

This is an informal, no obligation presentation

If you would like to receive information from our previous workshops please call our office.

Take Care With Your Heart - And the Hearts of Others!

It has been almost one year since my sister passed away suddenly of a heart attack at age 50! As February is best known for Valentine’s Day, and the sharing of one’s heart with others, I would like to dedicate this blog to my sister in the hopes that other lives will not be cut as short as hers.

Heart Disease is the #1 killer of women in the U.S. and the leading cause of disability among women. The most common cause of heart disease is Coronary Artery Disease, which is the leading cause of heart attack and the condition my sister had, unbeknownst to anyone. She did have high blood pressure and high cholesterol, both risk factors for the disease. And if she had just worked to manage these two factors, she might be here today.

This Valentine’s Day, please encourage your loved ones to follow the American Heart Association’s guidelines for maintaining a healthy heart:

Stop smoking

Maintain a healthy weight

Exercise

Eat a heart healthy diet

Manage your blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar

Start a walking group, support each other!


For more information see www.heart.org

And remember, February is American Heart Month!

Discounted Drug Subsidy Program for Seniors and Disabled!

Medicare can be very confusing for all of us. Co pays and deductibles, part A, B, D… yikes!

Even though Medicare has an extensive website with a lot of great information, for many, it can be difficult to navigate. As a result, many beneficiaries do not benefit from some great programs.

One of the little known subsidy programs for low-income seniors and the disabled is the Extra Help Program, which can save thousands of dollars on prescription drugs. This program began in 2006 and the ability to sign up goes to June 2011, and can save seniors and the disabled an average of $3,900 per year. It can reduce prescription drug premiums, co-pays and deductibles and plugs the “doughnut hole” or gap in coverage that starts when beneficiaries exceed $2,840 in total drug costs. It is administrated jointly by the Department of Health and Human Services and the Social Security Administration.

Eligibility is income dependent; for a senior living alone, income must be less than $16,245 per year or $21,855 for a married couple living together. For many who have both Medical and Medicare they may be automatically enrolled. However, there are many who have slipped through the cracks. For more information, go here.

HH Out & About!

Heartwood Health attended the first Annual Fall Prevention Walk of Contra Costa County on September 25th.
Jennifer Mountain, Executive Director of the Fall Prevention Program, did an excellent job organizing the program for the day. Seniors from all over Contra Costa enjoyed a leisurely ½ mile walk, entertainment and exposure to a variety of resources in the area. The highlight of the day was the belly dancing performance which included a 96 year young dancer!

Great job Jennifer, we're already looking forward to next year’s event!

Health Reform Changes Go into Effect!

Health Reform key consumer provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (P.L. 111-148) went into effect Thursday, September 23, 2010. These new rules will be applied when an existing group plan is renewed or a new plan is purchased. For instance, if your plan year begins on January 1, then these changes will be part of your policy starting on January 1, 2011. Some of the provisions include:

· End of Lifetime Limits - plans will no longer be able to place lifetime caps on the dollar amount of benefits. If your insurance had a lifetime cap, you will receive notification that the cap has been lifted.

· Annual Limit Minimums Established - the gradual phase - out of the annual limit dollar amount for all group policies and new individual policies begins. For a plan or policy year beginning between September 23, 2010, and September 22, 2011, the minimum annual limit can be no less than $750,000. The minimum annual limit amount will increase in subsequent years until it is eliminated in 2014.

· End of Pre-Existing Condition Exclusions for Children - new individual or existing group plans will have to accept children under the age of 19, regardless of a pre-existing condition. This will extend to all plans and all ages in 2014.

· End of Rescissions and Cancelations - plans can no longer drop a patient's coverage, except in cases of fraud.

· Dependent Coverage Extended - young adults will be able to stay on their parent's health plan until age 26.

Has anyone benefited yet from these changes?

Helping Seniors Find Comfort

We were happy to be featured yesterday in Comfort Keepers’ enewsletter with an informative article written by Lisa Gray, RN, one of our Health Advocates. Comfort Keepers is a great, local, non medical home care company that provides in-home services to seniors and others needing assistance. Jessica and her sister are two of the most caring individuals I know. They love their work and their clients and it shows!

It’s informative articles like these that help increase awareness of our emerging field. Health care advocacy has so many applications, and advocacy for seniors is another area that is in great demand. By creating a wide-ranging network of caregivers in the Bay Area, Comfort Keepers serves an important group in our society!

Advocate for Yourself!

Sometimes, you have to trust your gut instinct. Patti’s niece Nicole recently found out that obtaining a second opinion is not only smart, but necessary!

When visited her regular physician at Kaiser Permanente after injuring her knee, he listened to her explanation of a previous ACL replacement and meniscus tear, and after examining the knee, recommended the usual regimen for a potential meniscus tear; Advil, rest elevation, and so on.

But Nicole had already tried the elevate, rest, ice, rotation of treatment. She had been through knee injury before, and after a month of rest, she knew that the tried and true approach wasn’t helping. Nicole leads a very active life; she plays softball, coaches cheerleading, works fulltime and has three sons, all involved in different activities. She was ready to have an MRI done, to really know the extent of her injury.

Nicole had read that meniscus tears usually do not heal on their own and felt that an MRI would determine if a more aggressive treatment was necessary. But her Dr. resisted, which led to a few awkward silences in the exam room, after which she stated that she wanted a second opinion. He agreed, but the next appointment with the sports MD wasn’t for 2 ½ weeks.
Nicole’s next step was to go directly to Member Services, and unfortunately make a complaint. She was able to get an appointment a week later, and a more specific diagnosis after finally getting an MRI and final diagnosis of a new meniscus tear, she was able to receive treatment and recover more quickly.

Nicole is an informed patient, she had tried the first line treatment and knew the next logical step. By advocating for herself and seeking treatment in that she was satisfied with, Nicole received better care in the long run.
Her belief is that one must be a participant in their health care and her hope is that doctors will “listen “ to their patients, as often they know their body the best.