October—December 2014 Volume 2, Issue 4 First Tennessee Area Agency on Aging & Disability QUARTERLY NEWS From The Director Church Hill Senior Center Golden Nuggets (L-R) Eugene Harris, Evelyn Shrout, Garrett White, Vera Spradlin (Alternate) After the success of last year’s Senior Brain Games, the Tennessee Commission on Aging and Disability (TCAD) held its Second Annual Senior Brain Games in September. The games are designed to encourage older adults across Tennessee to exercise their brain through trivia competitions. Local competitions were held at the Clinchfield Senior Adult Center, Elizabethton Senior Citizens Center, and Church Hill Senior Center. These teams, along with a team representing the Kingsport Senior Center, Johnson City Seniors’ Center, and Rogersville Senior Citizens Center competed in the District Brain Games on August 12 at the Kingsport Senior Center. The Church Hill Senior Center Golden Nuggets won the competition and represented the First District in the Regional Competition held on August 28 at the O’Conner Senior Center in Knoxville. The Senior Gamers team from the Morristown/Hamblen County Senior Center won the Regional competition and went on to win the state competition held on September 20 in Nashville. The FTAAAD would like to thank Ken Kisiel (pictured below with Kathy Whitaker) for his representation of our district on the TCAD. Mr. Kisiel, Upper East Tennessee Representative, was appointed as a board member by the Governor in 2008. The full Commission approved his appointment to Commission Chair from October 1, 2010 through September 30, 2014. During his tenure, Mr. Kisiel served on various committees including the Planning Committee; Strategic Planning Committee; and the Executive Committee. Mr. Kisiel is currently the chief executive officer for Appalachian Orthopedic Associates and has worked in the healthcare field since 1971. He has also served as an Alderman for the Town of Unicoi; a member of the Town of Unicoi Board of Zoning Appeals; ViceChairman of the Town of Unicoi Planning Commission and board member of the Unicoi Ruritan Club. He volunteers at various fundraising events at the Clinchfield Senior Adult Center. Thanks, Mr. Kisiel, for your service and support of the First District. Inside this issue: Medicare Open Enrollment 2 Tennessee for a Lifetime 2 TennCare’s Managed Care 3 Organizations Chronic Disease and 3 Diabetes Self-Management Programs Senior Center Spotlight 4 Fraud and Financial Exploitation Awareness 4 Upcoming Events 4 The First Tennessee Human Resource Agency (FTHRA) Nutrition Program was selected for the 2014 Gordon Acuff Award of Excellence awarded by the Tennessee Association of Human Resource Agencies. Additionally, the program received national recognition for this achievement in the National Association of Nutrition and Aging Services Programs (NANASP) Washington Bulletin. Congratulations FTHRA! ~ Kathy Whitaker FTAAAD Quarterly News Page 2 Medicare Open Enrollment The Medicare Part D Annual Enrollment Period is October 15th—December 7th. This is the period each year when Medicare beneficiaries can join, switch or drop their Medicare Part D and Medicare Advantage coverage. Medicare Par D and Medicare Advantage plans change their coverage and costs every year, so it is important to review your plan and compare it to others on the market every fall. The First Tennessee Area Agency on Aging and Disability’s Tennessee State Health Insurance Assistance Program (TN SHIP) and ETSU’s Gatton School of Pharmacology are partnering to provide free and objective assistance in comparing Part D and Medicare Advantage plans at enrollment events held at several local community organizations and senior centers. Included is a list of events planned for the area. Trained Medicare counselors will be available to assist Medicare beneficiaries and their families in comparing their Part D and Medicare Advantage plans for 2015. Appointments are preferred for these events. Date/Time 10/16 9 a—12 p 10/21 9 a—12 p 10/23 9 a—12 p 10/28 9 a—12 p 10/30 9 a—12 p 11/4 9 a —11:30 p 11/6 9 a—12 p 11/13 9 a—12 p 11/18 9 a—12 p 11/20 9 a—12 p Location Appt Phone # Red Legacy 423-722-5205 Elizabethton YWCA of Bristol 423-968-9444 Bristol Clinchfield Senior Ctr 423-743-5111 Erwin Memorial Park 423-434-6237 Community Ctr, Johnson City Jonesborough Sr Ctr 423-753-1075 Jonesborough Church Hill Senior Ctr 423-722-5205 Church Hill Clinchfield Senior Ctr 423-743-5111 Erwin Kingsport Senior Ctr 423-392-8400 Kingsport Kingsport Senior Ctr 423-392-8400 Kingsport Greene County Skills 423-722-5205 Greeneville For further information, please contact TN SHIP at 1-877801-0044. Tennessee for a Lifetime A community education initiative sponsored by the State of Tennessee and the Tennessee Commission on Aging and Disability (TCAD) will be held on Saturday, October 18, 2014 from 8:00 a.m.—12:00 p.m. at Northeast State Community College, 2425 Highway 75, Blountville. Topics to be presented at the half day event include: Aging in Place; Medicare; Caregiving; Alzheimer’s; End of Life; Nursing Homes/Assisted Living; Financial Planning and Technology. Opening remarks will be presented by Community College, and Tennessee Health Care Association (THCA). Lunch from Firehouse BBQ will be provided immediately following the program. After lunch, many organizations will be available to answer any questions. Information/Registration: The event is free of charge but everyone is encouraged to register at www.tn.gov/comaging or www.tnlifetime.eventbrite. com. For further questions, contact TCAD at 615-741-2056 or email [email protected]. Partners include ETSU, FTAAAD, Tennessee Hospital Association (THA), TN SHIP, SMP, Northeast State Whether you are young or young at heart, aging is for everyone. Congressman Phil Roe. Volume 2, Issue 4 Page 3 TennCare’s Managed Care Organizations Contracts to AmeriGroup, UnitedHealthcare and BlueCare Tennessee have been awared by the Bureau of Tenncare. “All three managed care organizations (MCOs) have proven their ability to efficiently administer our integrated benefit package of physical, behavioral and longterm care services and have shown each is willing to take additional steps to further improve quality and better align incentives for members and providers,” said Health Care Finance and Administration Deputy Chairman, Darin Gordon. Each MCO will accept full financial risk to participate in the TennCare program and will be paid fixed monthly payment to manage and deliver care to members. The new contracts will take effect January 1, 2015 with full statewide implementation completed by the end of 2015. “TennCare is currently working with health plans to ensure the transition will go as smoothly as possible for our members,” Gordon said. “Continuity of care is the utmost concern as we plan for implementation in 2015.” AmeriGroup currently serves approximately 208 million members in 12 states and is dedicated to offering real solutions to improve health care access and quality for members, while proactively working to reduce the overall cost of care to taxpayers. BlueCare Tennessee and Blue Care are independent licensees of the BlueCross BlueShield Association. The Chattanooga-based company focuses on managing care and providing quality health care products, services and information for government programs. UnitedHealthcare is an operating division of UnitedHealth Group, the largest single health carrier in the United States, delivering innovative products and services to approximately 70 million Americans. TennCare is the state’s Medicaid program that provides health care to 1.2 million Tennesseans. Chronic Disease and Diabetes Self-Management Programs The First Tennessee Area Agency on Aging & Disability (FTAAAD) provides Chronic Disease SelfManagement and Diabetes SelfManagement programs as part of our evidence-based programming. These are effective, evidencebased community workshops to improve chronic condition selfmanagement skills. In Tennessee, the workshops are referred to as Living Well with Chronic Conditions or Take Charge of Your Diabetes. The workshops are offered once a week for six weeks. Each session is 2.5 hours long and may be held in your local hospital or library, or in settings such as a church, community center or senior center. From October 1, 2013 to September 30, 2014, three Living Well with Chronic Conditions workshops have been conducted, with a total of 47 enrolled (attended at least one session) and 34 completers (participated in at least four of the six sessions) for a 72% completion rate. A Take Charge of Your Diabetes workshop was also held, with a total of 13 enrolled (attended at least 1 session) and seven completers (participated in at least 4 of the 6 sessions) for a 54% completion rate. Every part of the workshop is a valuable experience. The philosophy is that the participants guide each other while improving skills that will help them become more effective self-managers. Currently, the Clinchfield Senior Adult Center In Erwin is hosting a Living Well with Chronic Conditions workshop. The next Take Charge of Your Diabetes workshop will be held on Thursday’s from October 9 – November 13 at the Johnson City Seniors’ Center at Memorial Park Community Center from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. If you would like to register for the Take Charge of Your Diabetes workshop or need additional information, please contact Tracy Buckles, Health Promotions Specialist, at 423-722-5109 or [email protected]. First Tennessee Area Agency on Aging & Disability Fraud and Financial Exploitation Awareness Senior Center Spotlight 3211 N. Roan Street Johnson City, TN 37601 Phone: 1-866-836-6678 (toll free) SHIP Phone: 1-877-801-0044 Fax: 423-926-8291 E-mail: [email protected] Newsletter Editor—Teresa Sutphin [email protected] We’re on the web: www.ftaaad.org No person shall, on the grounds of race, color, or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance. The services of the FTAAAD are funded in part by Title III of the Older Americans Act and State funds through grants from the Tennessee Commission on Aging and Disability. Contributions are encouraged to support all programs but no one is refused service for inability to pay. The FTAAAD is part of the First Tennessee Development District. The Kingsport Senior Center’s Artisan Center received a Positive Images in Aging award at the recent Southeastern Association of Area Agencies on Aging (SE4A) annual conference held at Amelia Island, Florida, on September 23. The Positive Images of Aging award was established by the SE4A to recognize groups, agencies or businesses in the private and/or public sector who have, through their efforts, presented a positive image of older adults or individuals whose platform has impacted a large market. Shirley Buchanan, Kingsport Senior Center Director, pictured above with Kathy Whitaker was on hand to receive the award. CONTRATULATIONS to the Kingsport Senior Center Artisan Center. Scan our QR code to go directly to the FTAAAD website Governor Bill Haslam has proclaimed the month of October, 2014, as Fraud and Financial Exploitation Awareness Month. Fraud and identity theft are some of the most costly crimes Americans face. According to 2013 Federal Trade Commission data, there were more than 1.4 million fraud and identity theft complaints representing more than $1.6 billion in reported losses in the U.S., with 21,757 of those complaints representing more than $21 million in reported losses occurring in Tennessee. The Division of Consumer Affairs within the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance works tirelessly to address and mediate consumer complaints of unfair and deceptive practices and fraud. The Tennessee Commission on Aging & Disability, nine local Area Agencies on Aging & Disability, and the Adult Protective Services Division within the Tennessee Department of Human Services, are responsible for awareness, prevention, investigation, and reporting of fraud and financial abuse crimes against elderly and disabled adults in Tennessee. If you suspect abuse or neglect, contact Adult Protective Services (APS) at 1-888APS-TENN or (1-888-277-8366). UPCOMING EVENTS!!!!! October 11-22, 2014—First District Senior Olympics October 13, 2014—Columbus Day October 15—December 7, 2014— Medicare Part D Open Enrollment (see page 2 for more details) October 18, 2014—Tennessee for a Lifetime, 8:00 am—12:00 pm (see page 2 for more details) October 31, 2014—Halloween November 5, 2014— NO NETVAC meeting November 6, 2014—Washington County Seniors and Law Enforcement Together (SALT) Council meeting, 2:00 p.m., Johnson City Seniors’ Center at Memorial Park Community Center November 11, 2014—Veterans Day November 27, 2014— Thanksgiving Day December 1, 2014—Cyber Monday December 4, 2014—Washington County SALT Council, 2:00 pm, Johnson City Seniors’ Center at Memorial Park Community Center December 21, 2014—First Day of Winter December 24, 2014—Christmas Eve December 25, 2014—Christmas Day December 31, 2014—New Year’s Eve Happy Holidays!!!!!!
© Copyright 2024