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The Aging and Disability Resource Center
   8700 Tesoro Drive, Suite 700
   San Antonio, Texas 78217-6228
(210) 477-3275 
 
 October 2013 eNewsletter
IN THIS ISSUE
Health Insurance Marketplace is here!
Assistance with Medicare Open Enrollment
Warm Hearts, Warm Homes
Health & Wellness: Age Well, Live Well
OCD Texas Conference
Bexar AAA 

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The Alamo Service Connection (ASC)---- the Aging and Disability Resource Center for the AACOG region----  would like to provide you with the following newsworthy information.  Our goal is to have an informed community that promotes personal choice and is connected to long term services and supports. 
Open Enrollment 2013    
Health Insurance Marketplace is here!
  

Health Insurance Marketplace Navigators at AACOG can help consumers who don't have coverage now or who want to look at more affordable options.

  

As of October 1, consumers age 18 and 64 years who do not have health insurance may qualify for low cost health plans through the Health Insurance Marketplace.

 

The latest, most accurate and up to date information may be found at www.healthcare.gov.  Consumers and families may review, select, and enroll in a Qualified Health Plan (QHP).  However, as many people are aware, there have been problems accessing that website due to very high demand.

 

If you need assistance while waiting to access the website, or if  you are unable to sign up on the website, call AACOG's Navigators.  They are trained, certified and trusted staff who can assist you.  You may contact the AACOG Navigators Alamo Service Connection at (210) 362-5254 or (800) 960-5201.

 

Consumers may also contact Communicare Clinics at (210) 233-7157 or www.communicaresa.org or CentroMed at (210) 922-7000.  To reach the Health Insurance Marketplace help line you may call 1-800-318-2596.

 
     
Volunteer to be Part of Helping the Uninsured Access Health Insurance
    

It is estimated that 300,000 people in Bexar County are eligible for the Health Insurance Marketplace under the Affordable Care Act. If you or your organization would like to volunteer to be navigators or community educators, we can train you free of charge.  Navigators are required to complete a background check, HIPPA training, and a 20-30 hour online training program that will lead to certification.  Each volunteer navigator will be asked to give four or more hours a week helping people apply and enroll between now and March 2014.

 

For more information, please contact Nancy Dunn Thompson at [email protected].

    
Medicare Annual Enrollment Period
October 15 through December 7, 2013
 
Whether you have original Medicare, a Medicare Advantage plan, or a Part D prescription drug plan, you have one opportunity each year to make changes.  This opportunity is Medicare's Annual Enrollment period, which begins October 15th and runs through December 7th.  Changes made during this time will become effective January 1, 2014.
 

In the past year, you may have changed medications or been diagnosed with a new medical condition.  The cost of your Medicare plan might have changed too.  These  or other changes could mean that your current plan will no longer meet your needs.

 

If you want to find out if you have the best plan for your needs and/or make changes, schedule an appointment with our Benefits Counselors, who are certified by the Texas Department of Insurance to provide free and impartial counseling to help you find the best health plan for you.  They are taking appointments now at (210) 477-3275.

 

If you have access to a computer, you can compare plans in your area or enroll in a new plan by visiting the www.medicare.gov website or by calling 1-800-Medicare (1-800-633-4227).

  

For a list of enrollment sites please click here:  List in Spanish

List in English

    ASC Logo

Keep San Antonio Warm this Winter: Support "Warm Hearts, Warm Homes" Heater Assistance program 
  
The 4th annual "Warm Hearts, Warm Homes" heater assistance program will be kicking off soon!  Each year, Alamo Service Connection solicits donations to purchase heaters for seniors and persons with disabilities who have no source of heat in their homes.  Hard as it is to believe, hundreds of people in our community use pilot lights, candles or unsafe space heaters to keep warm in winter.
  
More than 3,400 Americans die each year in fires and approximately 17,500 are injured.  An overwhelming number of fires occur in the home.  Every year over 1,000 senior citizens die in fires.  Many of these fires could have been prevented.  Seniors are especially vulnerable because many live alone and can't respond quickly.
  
No government funds can be used for this project.  We are asking members of our community to donate $40 for the purchase of a heater.

  

We purchase new heaters and deliver them to those in need.  Some of our previous donors have purchased heaters in the name of a friend or family member as a holiday gift.  We would be happy to provide gift cards recognizing this gift.  Donors will be recognized in our newsletter and website www.askasc.org.

 

Donations for "Warm Hearts, Warm Homes" may be sent to: 

  

"WARM HEARTS, WARM HOMES"

 Alamo Area Development Corporation

8700 Tesoro, Suite 700  
San Antonio, Texas 78217
  

Please make checks payable to:  AADC-ASC Warm Hearts.  Donations are tax deductible and acknowledgment letters will be provided.  For more information, call the Alamo Service Connection at (210) 477-3275 or email [email protected].

  

For excellent information in English and Spanish about home fires and how to prevent them, go to:  www.usfa.fema.gov

 

Flying for the Holidays? 

 

TSA Offers Mobility Services...read more.  Before going on an airline, travelers with disabilities may request a Passenger Support Specialist by calling the TSA Cares hotline at 1-855-787-2227.

 

Discount Parking Coupon at San Antonio International Airport...Click Here

 

SA's Terminal A Reaches Milestone in Improvements...read more.    

 

   

Airport Parking Garage Now Signals when Floor is Full

Mobility in and around the Home

 

Mobility in Your Home...Read More...

 

Mobility in Your Brain...Read More...

 


   

    

 

Free AccessAbility Fest, October 27, 2013, Noon - 5 pm, El Mercado, 514 W. Commerce, San Antonio, Texas  78207

 

Click here for flyer

Age well Live Well 
Health & Wellness:  Age Well, Live Well Program Launches at Siclovia
 
A good time was had by all as Bexar AAA, volunteers and 26 Community Partners, plus Ken Bomar & Holly Riley of the State of Texas' Department of Aging and Disability Services (DADS), launched the "Age Well, Live Well" Program at Siclovia on September 29, 2013.  For this event, the City closed Broadway from Alamo Plaza to Lion's Field to vehicular traffic and invited residents to "Come Play in the streets" - and they DID!  Bexar AAA, with grant funding from DADS, sponsored a Reclovia (Activity Zone) area that was bursting with activities - over 36 activities in a 5 hour period - for all to enjoy.  From Chair Volleyball by District 5 Senior residents to toddlers with hula hoops, to juggling and Segway demonstrations, a fun time was had by all.  The Reclovia featured Passports that were stamped by at least three of the 26 Community Partner booths for activities to earn participants a free "Age Well, Live Well" tee-shirt. Over 1,000 partner sponsored tee-shirts were earned by attendees that day!  And, this year the Siclovia attracted over 73,000 attendees.
 
Another Siclovia event is scheduled to be held on March 23, 2014.  Follow our Newsletter for more details later.  Don't miss out - come join us!   
 
"Keeping YOU moving! - Rose Ryan, Regional Mobility Manager
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

OCD Texas Conference

October 19 & 20

Sheraton Gunter Hotel

San Antonio, Texas

 

 

 For more information, click on image.

 Aging Volunteer Program!

  

The first Thursday of every month, AACOG/Bexar Area Agency on Aging holds a volunteer orientation and YOU are welcome!  The volunteer orientation is our chance to welcome you to the Agencies on Aging at AACOG and review with you the mission, values and services of the agency, how you can serve within the agency, as well as policies and procedures that will help you have a safe and positive experience as a volunteer or intern.  You will also get to network with your fellow volunteers and receive information materials and the volunteer handbook.

 

The next orientations will be held:

 

Thursday, November 7, 2013 and Thursday, December 5, 2013

Time: 8:30 AM - 11:30 AM

Location: Alamo Area Council of Governments (AACOG) 8700 Tesoro Drive,  7th Floor, San Antonio, Texas 78217 

 

Accommodations:  Please advise us if any accommodations are needed for functional impairments.    The building and restrooms are wheelchair-accessible. 

Refreshments:  Coffee and snacks will be provided.

 

For more information, contact Henri Eaton at [email protected]  (210) 362-5261 or Siena Lindemann at [email protected] (210) 362-5217.

 

We look forward to seing you!

Caregiver's Corner
Teleconnection logo   
Learning sessions on a variety of caregiver topics, hosted over the phone by professional facilitators and experts are being offered in both English and Spanish.  
 

For more information on the topics, please call (210) 877-7987, toll-free at (866) 390-6491 or Click Here.

Permission to reproduce, reprint
 
This newsletter may be reproduced and all articles may be reproduced and/or reprinted without permission when credit is given to the Alamo Service Connection, a publication of the AACOG Area Agencies on Aging, and the ASC website www.askasc.org is listed.

 

Alamo Service Connection
The Aging and Disability Resource Center
 
A community partnership working together for you: Alamo Area Agency on Aging, Bexar Area Agency on Aging, Alamo Local Authority for Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (ALA-IDD),  Bexar County, City of San Antonio Program for Seniors and Families, Center on Independent Living (COIL), San Antonio Food Bank, Goodwill Industries of San Antonio/Bexar County, San Antonio Coalition for Veterans (SACV), San Antonio Independent Living Services (SAILS), Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services (TDADS), Texas Health/Human Services Commission, and United Way of San Antonio/Bexar County. 
Contact Information 
To submit suggestions, articles, news releases, links or events to be considered for use in future issues, please send them no later than November 1, 2013 (in a MSWord format, attachments in PDF format) as an attachment to an email message to Elena Hernandez, email: [email protected]; Voice (210) 362-5274; Fax: (210) 225-5937.