By Tim Macy, District Office Intern 

For many people, $30 or $40 a month is not a life-changing amount of money. However, someone receiving Social Security checks as their sole means of income might tell you that $30 a month is the difference in being able to afford – or going without – a very necessary prescription. 

This $30 difference often comes in the form of an enrollment fee assessed through Social Security to pay for a specific Medicare health plan. Medicare offers a surprisingly high number of different health plans, each tailored to fit the needs of a variety of Kansans. These many different plans, though useful in their specificity, are not always so easy to understand if you aren’t familiar with the system. Our office fields phone calls every day from people who are experiencing difficulties understanding the Medicare system…which is good, because together our constituent services staff has enough experience to solve almost any problem. 

When dealing with an organization the size of Medicare, it is difficult to sit down with one of their representatives and have them look at your specific medical history and needs and then be placed into the proper medical plan. After all, the hard workers at Medicare have the difficult responsibility of assessing and tending to the needs of millions of Americans on a daily basis. Additionally, even when you are properly placed within a plan, your needs as a patient could very well change overnight. 

The paperwork and legwork required to change Medicare plans is not going to happen overnight. This disparity will often result in patients being billed for medical plans which no longer apply to them. These patients are often the same patients who can’t afford $30 extra within the time-frame of a month, and now they are stuck with paying for a medical plan that no longer applies to them in addition to enrollment fees for a new plan that can help. Also, when switching between plans, costly and unexpected co-pays may surprise patients seeking treatment. 

Predicaments such as the one discussed above often lead to late fees and even more paperwork when all the patient really wants to do is get treated and hopefully get better. This is where our office is happy and willing to step in. Please feel free to contact our office in the case of a Medicare or Medicaid emergency or even something as simple as a mix-up. Once you have signed a privacy waiver we are happy to contact Medicare, Medicaid or Social Security on your behalf and try to help you to get things straightened out.