Medicare Open Enrollment Season

We are a few days away from Open Enrollment! Beginning October 15th, Medicare beneficiaries can:

• Join a new Medicare Advantage Plan or stand-alone prescription drug plan (Part D plan)
• Switch between Original Medicare with or without a Part D plan and Medicare Advantage

Below are a few resources to help get you ready for Fall Open Enrollment:

• Click here to review six things to keep in mind while you are choosing your Medicare coverage
• Medicare Advantage versus Original Medicare  Decision Tree
• Medicare & You 2024 Electronic Handbook

Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Breast cancer is a disease in which cells in the breast grow out of control. Treatment can vary, but early detection has resulted in positive survival outcomes. According to the New York-Presbyterian Department of Surgery, despite significant advances in detection and treatment for breast cancer, the breast cancer mortality rate for Black women remains 40% higher than that for White women. Factors like socioeconomic status, education, or insurance status can contribute to treatment delays.

Medicare beneficiaries can receive chemotherapy treatment under Part A if you are a hospital inpatient, and under Medicare Part B if you are a hospital outpatient or in a doctors office or freestanding clinic. Mammograms are also covered under Medicare Part B in the following instances:

• A baseline mammogram once in your lifetime (if you’re a woman between ages 35-39).
• Screening mammograms once every 12 months (if you’re a woman age 40 or older).
• Diagnostic mammograms more frequently than once a year, if medically necessary. Click here to learn more.

Whether it is the loss of a loved one or a personal experience, breast cancer has impacted the lives of many. Be sure to review some of the resources available to you or a loved one and help spread awareness. 

Medicare Fraud: Shut It Down
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

The best way to stop Medicare fraud? Help prevent it in the first place. Follow these 3 tips to protect yourself from scammers: 

1. If you get a call, text or email asking for your Medicare Number, don't respond. Don't give your Medicare card or Medicare Number to anyone except your doctor or people you know should have it. Remember, Medicare will never call you unprompted and ask you for your personal information.
2. Check your Medicare Summary Notices (MSNs) or claims statements carefully. If you see a charge for a service you didn't get or a product you didn't order (like a COVID-19 over-the-counter test), it may be fraud.
3. If you suspect fraud, report it at 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) or call the toll-free Senior Medicare Patrol fraud hotline at
   (1-800-938-8885). Visit Medicare.gov, the official source for Medicare information, to learn more about preventing Medicare fraud.

Watch this video to see how you can shut down Medicare fraud and abuse.