Medicare Interactive: New Sections for Caregivers

By: From National Alliance for Caregiving

(11/29/2006) Medicare ResearchThe Medicare Interactive website—a one-stop source for information about healthcare rights, options and benefits—has added new sections for family caregivers. The new sections can be accessed from the Topic Index page and contain the following information:

Under Section VIII. Medicare Advice for Caregivers

1. Caring for a Loved One: Addresses general questions such as “Will Medicare help me care for my loved one at home?”
2. Understanding Your Rights as a Caregiver: Explains what rights a caregiver has to make health care decisions (both medical and insurance) on behalf of a loved one.
3. Information about Your Loved One: Details what health, financial, and insurance information a caregiver should gather to be the best possible advocate.
4. Resources for Caregivers: Offers advice on where to go for assistance and support.

Under Section V. Medicare Rights and Protections

1. Getting Quality Care: Offers advocacy tips on how to best communicate with doctors, hospital staff and insurance representatives to get the best possible care.
2. Preparing for Your Future Health Care Needs: Offers advice on how to make sure you get the health care you want if you can no longer speak for yourself (information on health care proxies, living wills and powers of attorney).

To view the new sections, log on to Medicare Interactive from the National Alliance for Caregiving’s website. This Internet resource is provided by the Medicare Rights Center, the largest independent source of health care information and assistance in the United States for people with Medicare.