- About the Project
- Educational Programming
- Reports on Part D Policy Details
- Comparing New York State Prescription Drug Plans
- 2009 Medicare Pocket Guide
- Anatomy of a Part D Plan
- Glossary of Terms
- Common Acronyms
- Preparing and Promoting an Enrollment Clinic
- Tip Sheets from CMS
- Medicare and You
- Affirmations
- Mission Vision and Objectives
Welcome to Medicare & You 2009
Click on the Official Handbook
Medicare’s goal is to make it easy for you to get the highest quality health care at the most affordable price. Medicare is transforming itself from a program which simply pays the bills to a program which actively supports a high quality health care system.
What do we mean by a high quality health care system? It’s a system that does the following:
>Rewards providers for quality and efficiency
>Uses objective standards to determine quality and efficiency
>Communicates using an interconnected, computerized health information network, so providers can get a comprehensive view of the patient securely and without delay
>Offers consumers complete, objective, easily accessible information, so they can make solid decisions about their own health care based on quality and price
Medicare shares quality information about providers in your area at
www.medicare.gov.
In addition, this “Medicare & You” handbook is another way Medicare is working to make sure you have reliable information to help you make good health care decisions.
Throughout this handbook, we have information about how you can get the most out of your Medicare, including Medicare health and prescription drug plan choices and coverage, how to protect yourself and Medicare from fraud, background on advance directives, and resources for detailed information and personalized help. This information is up-to-date between January 1, 2009–December 31, 2009. You will get a new handbook every fall to help you compare coverage and learn new and important information..
This material is based upon work supported by a grant from the Dean of the College of Human Ecology and Smith Lever funds from the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.