Volunteers are instrumental for the program operations of the Land of the Dancing Sky AAA.
They provide vital services and information allowing seniors to maximize their knowledge, health outcomes, and ultimately their independence as they navigate the complex world of health insurance, Medicare, and aging services in general.
Health insurance counseling is one area that volunteers are utilized to assist seniors for Land of the Dancing Sky AAA.
These volunteers are required to complete an eighteen hour “Core Body of Knowledge” training before they are “certified” SHIP (State Health Insurance Assistance Program) Counselors; they continue their education through quarterly trainings and webinars on a wide range of topics.
Once trained the SHIP volunteers meet with clients one-on-one in their very own communities to compare Medicare Part D Prescription Drug plans; educate those new to Medicare; assist with applications for programs to help pay for Health Insurance and prescription drug costs; and sort through health insurance paperwork, all in a professional, unbiased, and confidential manner.
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Currently Land of the Dancing Sky has 14 certified SHIP volunteers, but the need is great and will only continue to grow with the rising complexities of health care and the rising number of seniors in our state.
Medicare Open Enrollment, which runs from Oct. 15 through Dec. 7 of each year, is an especially busy time for the Senior LinkAge Line (1-800-333-2433) call centers of Land of the Dancing Sky.
To alleviate some of this call volume a group of temporary staff known as “Medicare Specialists” are trained to answer Senior LinkAge Line calls during Open Enrollment.
The Medicare Specialists and SHIP volunteers become “heroes” for the clients they serve in so many ways.
An example of this wonderful work comes from Judy (Medicare specialist), who assisted a gentleman who was paying around $3,000 per year for insulin for his pump because his Part D plan did not cover it.
Judy realized something was not right, insulin for a pump should be billed through Part B, not Part D.
After doing some advocacy work with the pharmacy, it was discovered that the diagnosis code required to get this covered under Part B was not used.
The pharmacy corrected this coding error and is going to reimburse Allan for the almost $3,000 he spent in insulin costs from the last year, and going forward Allan will only pay $20 per month for the rest of his medications.
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Allan is thrilled and plans to buy presents for his kids with the money he will get back.
Volunteers can also serve in other capacities for Land of the Dancing Sky AAA.
Senior Surf volunteers lead computer classes geared towards teaching seniors how to use the computer to “surf” the web for reliable websites such as Medicare.gov and MinnesotaHelp.info .
Other areas of service include leading evidence based classes such as Tai Ji Quan or Matter of Balance or doing outreach for the Senior LinkAge Line at community events like fairs.
Volunteers are truly an asset for the Land of the Dancing Sky AAA and the communities they serve!
If you have time and talent to share with Land of the Dancing Sky AAA please contact Amy Dallmann, volunteer coordinator, at 218-847-1385 or adallmann@mahube.org .
This article is made possible with Older Americans Act dollars from the Land of the Dancing Sky Area Agency on Aging.
