St. Vincent's Offering Free Medicare Counseling

BRIDGEPORT, CT — St. Vincent’s Medical Center is offering free counseling to help people select the best Medicare plan to meet their needs for the coming year and help them save money. Everyone is urged to sign up for this free, unbiased counseling at St. Vincent’s during Medicare’s Annual Open Enrollment Period, which runs from October 15 through December 7.

This service can help individuals make an informed choice, find plans that best meet their needs and save money. The service can also help with claims, billing and other Medicare issues.

With 14 years of experience, certified Medicare and government benefits counselor Betty Brandt will help individuals learn about their options regarding Medicare Part D Drug Plans and Medicare Advantage Plans. Every year these plans change, so this service will help clarify choices. In addition, the Medicare Savings Program and Extra Help for prescriptions will be discussed.

This one-on-one confidential counseling will be especially helpful to those new to Medicare or about to turn 65. Senior citizens, people with disabilities and family members are invited to talk by phone or meet with Betty Brandt by appointment in the privacy of the Banks Library, located on the third level of St. Vincent’s Medical Center.

Brandt is available to discuss Medicare benefits, supplemental insurance, prescription plans, Medicare savings program, statements, bills, claims, appeals, and Medicaid.

Brandt, who is a volunteer with St. Vincent’s Medical Center, holds a master’s degree in counseling from the University of Bridgeport, and holds Medicare and Government Benefits certification from CHOICES, a partnership between the CT State Department on Aging, the five Area Agencies on Aging, and the Center for Medicare Advocacy. She has been assisting people with Medicare issues for more than 14 years.

This program, sponsored by St. Vincent’s Mission Services, is a community outreach effort to help seniors and people with disabilities obtain the medical benefits they need, and to make the best decisions about health insurance coverage.

To schedule an appointment, or for more information, please contact Betty Brandt at svmcmedicare@outlook.com or 475.210.5111.

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About St. Vincent’s Medical Center

Founded by the Daughters of Charity in 1903, St. Vincent's Medical Center is a mission-driven organization committed to exceptional health care for all with special attention to persons living in poverty and those who are most vulnerable. St. Vincent’s, with more than 3,500 associates, includes a licensed 473-bed community teaching hospital, a 76-bed inpatient psychiatric facility in Westport, a large multispecialty provider group, and St. Vincent’s Special Needs Services. St. Vincent's was awarded the Nursing Magnet® Recognition, the highest national award for nursing excellence. In 2013, St. Vincent's Medical Center was named Top Performer on Key Quality Measures® by the Joint Commission, the leading accreditor of health care organizations in America, and has been recognized by both the Joint Commission and OSHA as a model of a highly reliable organization dedicated to patient safety. The American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer awarded St. Vincent's an Outstanding Achievement Award with Accreditation in 2012, and it also has earned its designation from the National Accreditation Program for Breast Cancer. For more information on programs and services, visit www.stvincents.org.

 

About Hartford HealthCare

Hartford HealthCare is Connecticut’s most comprehensive healthcare network. With 24,000 employees and total operating revenue of $4.3 billion, Hartford HealthCare has cultivated a strong, unified culture of accountability and innovation. Its care-delivery system, serving 161 towns and cities, includes two tertiary-level teaching hospitals, an acute-care community teaching hospital, an acute-care hospital and trauma center, three community hospitals, the state’s most extensive behavioral health network, a large multispecialty physician group, a clinical care organization, a regional home care system, an array of senior care services, and a large physical therapy and rehabilitation network at more than 350 locations in Connecticut and Rhode island. Hartford HealthCare’s unique, system-wide Institute Model offers a single, high standard of care in crucial specialties at hospital and ambulatory sites across Connecticut. The institutes include: Cancer; Behavioral Health; Heart and Vascular; Neuroscience; Orthopedics and Urology. Visit Hartford HealthCare at www.hartfordhealthcare.org

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Submitted by Fairfield, CT

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