Legal Assistance for Seniors

02/03/2023

New Rules for Medicare Enrollment Periods Now in Effect

New Rules for Medicare Enrollment Periods Now in Effect

Get more information from about new rules for Medicare enrollment periods now in effect:

02/03/2023

Lunar New Year x Black History Month: Celebration of Black & Asian Solidarity

Join us tomorrow for a Lunar New Year and Black History Month Celebration.

      Volunteering Interested in volunteering for the event? Sign up here!

02/03/2023

Please join us next week for Aging with Pride.

This Free event is available in person https://action.alz.org/PersonifyEbusiness/Default.aspx?TabID=1356&productId=89162201

or virtually
https://alz-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0uceCprzIsEt2cmQMdTZ9DF4ku7IRCZ1K8

02/02/2023

California Department of Aging Awards $89 Million to Support Home and Community Caregivers

https://www.newswire.com/news/california-department-of-aging-awards-89-million-to-support-home-and-21944794?utm_medium=email&_hsmi=244352807&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8A0mpEzC5Cq8ywQgwBmGcy2LtEU4BiJ9tuovNeYc0yaHy4pchdIBavkobBd029slPyIg2BK4hMOKSdFIA-I4e7lUBIxw&utm_content=244352807&utm_source=hs_email

78 Organizations Awarded CalGrows Innovation Fund Grants to Develop Training Programs and Offer Incentives to Direct Care Workers Across California

02/02/2023

NCEA - Feb. 1 2023

https://ncea.acl.gov/NCEA-Blog/Feb-1-2023.aspx

All people, regardless of age or disability, should be able to live independently and participate fully in their communities, and have the right to make choices and control the decisions in an about their lives. Learn more about community living

02/02/2023

Credit Scores

Creditors use credit scoring systems to figure out if you’d be a good risk for credit cards, auto loans, and mortgages. Phone companies and companies selling auto insurance and home insurance also use credit scores along with other factors to decide whether to sell you a policy or service. Credit scores also can affect the terms of the credit you’re offered. Having a higher credit score means businesses see you as less of a financial risk, which means you’re more likely to get credit or pay less for it.

Creditors use credit scoring systems to figure out if you’d be a good risk for credit cards, auto loans, and mortgages.

02/01/2023

Insulin Coverage

For more information on Medicare and Insulin Coverage

Find out if insulin coverage is included in your current plan. Medicare Part D includes insulin, certain medical supplies used to inject insulin.

02/01/2023

Tax Identity Theft (English and Spanish)

Consumer Action has just released a short video on tax-related identity theft featuring presenters from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The video release coincides with the start of the FTC's Identity Theft Awareness Week and lands just in time for tax-filing season.

Rosario Mendez, an attorney with the Division of Consumer and Business Education at the FTC, is our guest speaker for the English version of the video, while Gema de las Heras, a Consumer Education Specialist in the same division, presents during the Spanish version.

Check out the Tax Identity Theft: Protecting yourself from fraudsters at tax time videos, in either English or Spanish, to learn how consumers can stay safe from identity thieves during tax season and what steps to take if they fall victim. Please share this message with your client communities.

English: Check out the Tax Identity Theft: Protecting yourself from fraudsters at tax time videos [link to single playlist with both videos], in either Engli...

02/01/2023

Final Rules to Streamline and Expand Enrollment in Medicare Parts A and B

On November 3, 2022, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized rules that implement provisions of the Beneficiary Enrollment Notification and Eligibility Simplification (BENES) Act. Among other things, those provisions, which went into effect January 1, 2023:
• Abolish lags in the effective date for Medicare enrollments during the Initial Enrollment Period and General Enrollment Period;
• Establish new Special Enrollment Periods;
• Erase late enrollment penalties for individuals using the Special Enrollment Periods; and
• Extend Part B coverage of immune-suppressive drugs for kidney transplant recipients.

01/31/2023

CA Department of Rehabilitation

DISASTER PREPAREDNESS
Disaster Preparedness resources are critical for all Californians but especially for individuals with disabilities and older adults who are often disproportionally impacted during disasters such as wildfires, earthquakes, drought, and other natural disasters.

In collaboration with California Office of Emergency Services (CalOES) and other State and Federal partners, the Department of Rehabilitation is committed to the safety of all Californians with disabilities.

The following resources can help you and your family prepare in the event of a disaster.

The California Department of Rehabilitation (DOR) is an employment and independent living resource for people with disabilities...

01/31/2023

HHS Office of Inspector General: Nursing Home COVID-19 Underscores Need for Better Staffing and Improved Surveys - Center for Medicare Advocacy

https://medicareadvocacy.org/hhs-office-of-inspector-general-nursing-home-covid-19-underscores-need-for-better-staffing-and-improved-surveys/?emci=7cc98163-969d-ed11-994c-00224832eb73&emdi=58f0b65b-bf9d-ed11-994c-00224832eb73&ceid=9204137

Current minimum staffing requirements may not be sufficient to keep residents safe from infection.

01/31/2023

Should I Stay or Should I Go?

https://generations.asaging.org/should-i-stay-or-should-i-go

How climate disasters impact older adults’ sense of place.

01/30/2023

CMA Annual Report | Fiscal Year July 2021 - June 2022 - Center for Medicare Advocacy

https://medicareadvocacy.org/annual-report/?emci=7cc98163-969d-ed11-994c-00224832eb73&emdi=58f0b65b-bf9d-ed11-994c-00224832eb73&ceid=9204137

We hope our Annual Report inspires you, as your participation in the Center’s mission inspires us. As part of our community, you reinforce our commitment to enhancing the lives of Medicare beneficiaries and their families across the country. If you would like to make a donation to the Center, your...

01/30/2023

Two Programs Show Success Helping Young Caregivers

https://generations.asaging.org/two-programs-show-success-helping-young-caregivers

The American Association of Caregiving Youth’s complex work to keep caregivers in school and their care receivers healthy at home.

01/30/2023

The HICAP program in Alameda County is looking for volunteers. We need people who are willing to learn about Medicare so that they can help people with their Medicare questions and concerns. There is no requirement for previous experience with Health Insurance. Call 510-832-3040 and ask to speak with Jacob for more information.

01/27/2023

Free Online Community Health Worker (CHW) Certification Course

Enrollment is open now.

01/27/2023

Firearm Violence and Older Adults

https://generations.asaging.org/firearm-violence-and-older-adults

Guns impact older adults in myriad ways, but preventive measures can help.

01/27/2023

We are excited to be sponsoring the Alzheimer's Association and local partners in their FREE upcoming event Aging with Pride

Register to attend in person
https://action.alz.org/PersonifyEbusiness/Default.aspx?TabID=1356&productId=89162201

or virtually
https://alz-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0uceCprzIsEt2cmQMdTZ9DF4ku7IRCZ1K8

01/27/2023

SAN LEANDRO

Alameda County Office of Emergency Services requests Business Owners and Homeowners complete ONE of the following surveys detailing storm-related damages to their structure(s) or land. The survey was created on January 26th, and January 30th is the deadline to complete it.

Homeowners: https://veoci.com/v/p/form/7dctrbj9jv5p?c=222438
Businesses: https://veoci.com/v/p/form/uzhshg55jzeb?c=222438

If you have any follow-up questions, please contact Risk Manager Megan Stephenson at [email protected] or 510-577-3391.

01/26/2023

HAYWARD

Join LAS Attorney Kristen Boney and Newly-Elected Hayward City Council Member Julie Roche at the Latino Business Roundtable in Hayward tomorrow morning.
Details on the attached flyer.

01/26/2023

Prevention for Older Adults: Medicare Now Fully Covers Vaccines

https://ncoa.org/article/medicare-and-medicaid-now-fully-cover-preventive-vaccines?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=CBA

Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act, people with Medicare no longer have deductibles or co-pays when it comes to recommended preventive vaccines like those for Shingles and tetanus. Learn more.

01/26/2023

Ageist? Ableist? Who, Me?

https://generations.asaging.org/ageist-ableist-who-me

‘Why is it important to distinguish between ageism and ableism? Because we need to understand what we’re up against.’

01/25/2023

New Law Includes Retirement, Mental Health Wins for Older Americans

https://www.ncoa.org/article/new-law-will-help-older-americans-save-for-retirement-access-mental-health-care?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=PPA

Congress ended 2022 by passing a bipartisan omnibus bill that will help Americans save for retirement and access mental health care but falls short in some areas that will require continued NCOA advocacy. Learn more about the wins for older Americans.

01/25/2023

Balancing Scientific Inquiry with Empathy

https://generations.asaging.org/balancing-scientific-inquiry-empathy

New interventions for transfers consider needs of the care receiver and family caregiver.

01/25/2023

ncea.acl.gov

NCEA’s latest Research Translation, “Cumulative Contexts of Vulnerability to Intimate Partner Violence Among Women With Disabilities, Elderly Women, and Immigrant Women,” focuses on the contexts of vulnerability experienced by women with disabilities, elderly women, and immigrant women (DEI) that expose them to a heightened risk of intimate partner violence (IPV). Sasseville and colleagues reviewed and synthesized the literature to analyze the compounding contexts of vulnerability that expose DEI women to IPV. The research team addressed the similarities and differences in the forms and consequences of IPV, the risk factors for IPV, explanatory theories, as well as methods for IPV prevention.

01/24/2023

Don’t Get Old!

https://generations.asaging.org/dont-get-old

Personal life lessons in the practice of cultural humility.

01/24/2023

Given the excessively wet, windy season we’ve had here it’s timely to remind folks of the various Home Repair and Home Improvement offerings our agency can coordinate and pay for. Some programs fill up fast—now is the time to get your name on the interest list to get your roof repaired for next winter.

• Home Repair Grants: zero-cost repairs for mobile home, single family, and condo/townhome owners in Fremont, Hayward, Berkeley, and Pleasanton. Renters with a disabled household member may be served in Fremont, Berkeley, and Pleasanton. https://www.habitatebsv.org/services/home-repair
• Renew AC: 1% interest loans with no monthly payments, total interest capped at 50% of amount borrowed, exclusively for lower-income Alameda County Homeowners from $15,000 - $150,000. https://www.renewac.org/
• Learn about all the offerings through Habitat for Humanity East Bay/Silicon Valley’s virtual monthly info sessions with live Q&A, or email [email protected].
https://www.habitatebsv.org/events

01/24/2023

NCEA - Jan. 19 2023

Where Faith and Safety Meet: Partnering with Faith Communities to Increase Elder Justice
By Rev. Dr. Anne Marie Hunter

All people, regardless of age or disability, should be able to live independently and participate fully in their communities, and have the right to make choices and control the decisions in an about their lives. Learn more about community living

01/23/2023

Prevent Elder Su***de with Mental Health Support

https://generations.asaging.org/prevent-elder-su***de-mental-health-support

Pervasive ageism and lack of training prevents better su***de prevention in older adults.

01/23/2023

More Than a Thousand Nursing Homes Reached Infection Rates of 75 Percent or More in the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic; Better Protections Are Needed for Future Emergencies

New OIG Report on First Year of COVID-19 Pandemic Dispels Myth of Inevitability of Infection, Finds Fault with Infection Surveys, and Recommends Exploring Increased Staffing to Protect Residents from Infections
The Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (OIG) released a data brief today that examined how COVID-19 affected nursing homes during the first year of the pandemic. Using a variety of data sources, the report focused on the two initial COVID-19 surges that devastated nursing home residents in 2020, first in the spring and then in the fall. During this period of time, hundreds of thousands of nursing home residents were infected with COVID-19, with tens of thousands dying.

The report made several findings:
• High COVID-19 transmission in a county did not always lead to nursing homes in that county reaching extremely high infection rates.
• For-profit nursing homes made up a disproportionate percentage of nursing homes with extremely high infection rates.
• Surveyors failed to identify infection control deficiencies in the majority of nursing homes with extremely high infection rates.
• Current staffing requirements may not be sufficient to protect nursing home residents from deadly infections.
The report identified more than 1,300 homes with “extremely high infection rates” of 75% or more residents. Importantly, the report contradicts the assertion by many in the nursing home industry that nursing homes in high transmission areas could not prevent COVID-19 transmission to residents. The report found that 63% of counties with high transmission rates during the first surge did not have any nursing homes with “extremely high infection rates.” During the second surge, that number increased to 78%. According to the report, “Being located in a high-transmission county did not make it inevitable that a nursing home would have an extremely high infection rate.”

The report made several recommendations, including:
• CMS re-examine current staffing requirements and revise them as necessary. The report stated, “Our findings also provide evidence of the need to propose new minimum staffing standards” to make sure residents receive good care.
• CMS must improve how surveys identify infection control risks to nursing home residents and strengthen guidance on assessing the scope and severity of those risks.
• Target nursing homes in most need of infection control intervention and provide enhanced oversight and technical assistance to these facilities as appropriate.
The OIG report identifies significant failures both of nursing homes and regulators to protect residents from COVID-19. Understaffing and poor enforcement of regulations led to the catastrophic events that resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of nursing home residents and caused incalculable harm to others.

CMS has promised a minimum staffing standard, which according to the OIG report, will lead to better protections for nursing home residents. But CMS must also increase its enforcement actions regarding infection control. The OIG report makes clear: CMS must do something different in order to prevent a repeat of the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nursing homes had a surge of COVID-19 cases during the spring of 2020 and a greater surge during the fall, well after they were known to be vulnerable.

01/23/2023

Equity Impacts of Mental Health & Substance Abuse Cost-Sharing - Center for Medicare Advocacy

https://medicareadvocacy.org/equity-impacts-of-mental-health-substance-abuse-cost-sharing/?emci=a72487b5-1598-ed11-994c-00224832eb73&emdi=a676d376-4698-ed11-994c-00224832eb73&ceid=9204137

Cost-sharing parity for Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders increased white patients access, but had less impact on minority patients.

01/21/2023

From DC: New Proposed HUD Fair Housing Rule, CMS Nursing Home Policy Changes & New Issue Brief, and more

From DC: New Proposed HUD Fair Housing Rule, CMS Nursing Home Policy Changes & New Issue Brief, and more

Get this week’s updates, including information about a new proposed fair housing rule from HUD, CMS nursing home policy changes, a new issue brief from Justice in Aging, and more:

01/20/2023

Intervention in Elder Mistreatment
https://ncea.acl.gov/NCEA/media/Publication-4.0/NCEA_RB_Intervention.pdf

01/20/2023

CMS Improves Public Reporting of Nursing Home Information - Center for Medicare Advocacy

https://medicareadvocacy.org/cms-improves-public-reporting-of-nursing-home-information/?emci=a72487b5-1598-ed11-994c-00224832eb73&emdi=a676d376-4698-ed11-994c-00224832eb73&ceid=9204137

Agency makes two big changes to nursing home quality rating system and Care Compare website.

01/20/2023

Critical Provisions of Medicare Drug Bill Already Taking Effect - Center for Medicare Advocacy

https://medicareadvocacy.org/critical-provisions-of-medicare-drug-bill-already-taking-effect/?emci=a72487b5-1598-ed11-994c-00224832eb73&emdi=a676d376-4698-ed11-994c-00224832eb73&ceid=9204137

Though already threatened by industry and their supporters in Congress, several provisions to help Medicare beneficiaries are underway.

01/18/2023

Older California Homeowners Can Get Help with Delinquent Mortgage and Property Tax Payments

The Homeowners Assistance Fund (HAF) helps homeowners impacted by COVID-19 to catch up on their housing expenses. In California, the HAF program is called the California Mortgage Relief Program. The program provides money for past-due mortgage payments or property taxes that does not need to be paid back, including grants of up to $80,000 to reinstate delinquent mortgages and grants of up to $20,000 to cover delinquent property tax payments.

A new fact sheet produced by Justice in Aging and the National Housing Law Project, Older California Homeowners Can Get Help with Delinquent Mortgage and Property Tax Payments, provides information for advocates to help their older adult clients access this critical assistance. The fact sheet provides more information about who is eligible, how to apply, documents needed to complete the application, guidelines on re-applying for homeowners who were previously denied, and how homeowners can get assistance with the application process.

01/18/2023

Elder Justice “No Harm” Newsletter | Volume 4, Issue 6 Now Available - Center for Medicare Advocacy

https://medicareadvocacy.org/elder-justice-no-harm-newsletter-volume-4-issue-6-now-available/?emci=83580741-9092-ed11-9d7b-00224832e811&emdi=4a09b5a9-9a92-ed11-9d7b-00224832e811&ceid=9204137

What do nursing homes claim are "no harm" care deficiencies? You'd shocked.

01/17/2023

New Issue Brief: Why Too Many Psychotropic Medications in Nursing Facilities?

New Issue Brief: Why Too Many Psychotropic Medications in Nursing Facilities?

Read Issue Brief #2 in a New Series on Resident-Focused Nursing Facility Reform. This paper demonstrates how prejudice against nursing facility residents has led to residents being overmedicated.

01/17/2023

https://medicareadvocacy.org/gaps-in-hospice-abuse-and-neglect-reporting/?emci=83580741-9092-ed11-9d7b-00224832e811&emdi=4a09b5a9-9a92-ed11-9d7b-00224832e811&ceid=9204137

01/17/2023

Who Are Our Older Americans? ACL Releases 2021 Data on Older Americans - California Health Advocates

https://cahealthadvocates.org/who-are-our-older-americans-acl-releases-2021-data-on-older-americans/?mc_cid=31451e80ec&mc_eid=f9cc4ae1c2

Who are our older Americans? That is a rich and complex question that has a unique story for every individual and their web of relationships, communities,