Dutchess County Office for the Aging’s
AGING NEWS
For the week of December 11, 2017
Note: the Office for the Aging will be closed on Monday, December 25 and Monday, January 1, 2018 for the Christmas and New Year’s holidays…but otherwise we are OPEN regular hours, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Golden Living . . . News for Senior Citizens
Todd N. Tancredi, Director
Dutchess County Office for the Aging
WINTER NEWSLETTER AVAILABLE
The Winter 2017-18 edition of the Office for the Aging’s free quarterly newsletter, “Spotlight on Seniors,” is now available, both online and in print. The online version can be found at the Office for the Aging’s website, www.dutchessny.gov/aging, and the print version should be arriving in subscribers’ mailboxes shortly.
Inside this edition are tips on how to stay active when winter weather doesn’t cooperate with your plans for outdoor activity, a recap of the 2017 Senior Prom, the nomination form for the 2018 Senior Citizen of the Year awards, which will be presented next May…and a whole lot more!
If you would like to become a regular subscriber to the Spotlight and our weekly Aging News email, send a request to bjones@dutchessny.gov. Those without internet access can request to be added to the “Spotlight on Seniors” mailing list by calling the office at (845) 486-2555.
EPIC AND MEDICARE PART D
The open enrollment period for Medicare Part D closed earlier this month, but there is another way to save money on your prescription drug coverage you can explore. EPIC (Elderly Pharmaceutical Insurance Coverage), is a New York State program that provides supplementary drug coverage and premium assistance for seniors with Medicare Part D. As an added benefit, EPIC enrollees are able to change their Part D plan outside of the open enrollment period one time, any time during the year.
EPIC is open to any New York State resident who is age 65 or older and has an income up to $75,000 if single or $100,000 if married. To receive EPIC benefits, you must be enrolled in a Part D plan. EPIC may even help pay the Medicare Part D drug plan premiums for members with income up to $23,000 if single or $29,000 if married. Higher income members are required to pay their own Part D premiums, but EPIC provides premium assistance by lowering their EPIC deductible.
Seniors who are not eligible to join a Medicare Part D drug plan cannot join EPIC. Examples of ineligible seniors include those with a union/retiree drug subsidy program that is not a Part D plan, and seniors without Medicare Part A or Medicare Part B. Seniors with Medicare Advantage health insurance can only join EPIC if they have Part D drug coverage with their HMO.
It is very important to show both your EPIC ID card and the Medicare Part D plan card at your pharmacy to receive the maximum prescription benefits.
Two other important things to know:
A senior who receives full Medicaid benefits is not eligible for EPIC.
If your Part D drug plan has an annual deductible, you must pay the deductible before EPIC coverage will begin.
You can find the application (in eight languages), as well as more information about the program, online at https://www.health.ny.gov/health_care/epic/application_contact.htm or by calling EPIC toll free at 1-800-332-3742.
No documentation is required. EPIC verifies information with the Social Security Administration and the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance.
Golden Living is prepared by the Dutchess County Office for the Aging, 27 High Street, Poughkeepsie, New York 12601, telephone (845) 486-2555, email:ofa@dutchessny.gov website: www.dutchessny.gov/aging
Office for the Aging calendar of events:
Mon 12/11, 11 a.m. – “Mindful Eating During the Holidays”
With OFA nutrition coordinator Nimesh Bhargava
Friends and Family Adult Day Program
4327 Albany Post Rd. (Route 9), Hyde Park
(845) 486-2555 for details
Tue 12/12, 11 a.m. – “Mindful Eating During the Holidays”
With OFA nutrition coordinator Nimesh Bhargava
Rhinebeck Senior Friendship Center
1232 Route 308, Rhinebeck (Rock City)
(845) 486-2555 for details
Thu 12/14, 11 a.m. – “Mindful Eating During the Holidays”
With OFA nutrition coordinator Nimesh Bhargava
Beacon Senior Friendship Center, 1 Forrestal Heights
(845) 486-2555 for details
Wed 2/14/18, 10:30 a.m. – “Successful Aging”
With OFA outreach coordinator Brian Jones
Pine Plains Free Library, Second Floor Community Room
7775 South Main St. (Route 82)
(845) 486-2555 for details
Snow date: 3/14/18
Wed 3/21/18, 11:30 a.m. – “Successful Aging”
With OFA outreach coordinator Brian Jones
At “Lunch and Learn”, Temple Beth-El
118 South Grand Ave., Poughkeepsie
(845) 486-2555 for details
To request an Office for the Aging presentation for your senior, social and/or civic group, get in touch with outreach coordinator Brian Jones at (845) 486-2555 orbjones@dutchessny.gov. All your group needs to provide is a venue that’s wheelchair-accessible and open to the public, with space to set up a projector and screen. We have our own projector and screen – but if you have those, let us know. This time of year, we recommend you come up with an alternate presentation date you can make available in case of inclement winter weather.
We feature presentations on Successful Aging, Office for the Aging services, Medicare/Medicaid, senior housing, a wide range of topics related to nutrition, and more!
This week’s OFA volunteer opportunities:
Home Delivered Meals drivers – some of our volunteers in Beacon, LaGrange, Poughkeepsie and other areas are snowbirds and we could certainly use some wintertime replacements. This is a great way to give of yourself during the holiday season as well as in 2018. Contact nutrition coordinator Nimesh Bhargava atnbhargava@dutchessny.gov or (845) 486-2555.
Senior Friendship Center help – we have eight Friendship Centers around the county, in Beacon, East Fishkill, Millerton, Pawling, the City of Poughkeepsie, the Town of Poughkeepsie, Rhinebeck (Rock City), and South Amenia. Contact OFA at (845) 486-2555 to find out more.
For more opportunities to help your senior friends and neighbors in conjunction with the OFA’s mission, contact Friends of Seniors at (845) 485-1277 and/or the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) at (845) 452-5104.
SENIOR PROM BROADCAST SCHEDULE
The Office for the Aging’s 22nd annual Senior Prom will be broadcast on Spectrum’s (formerly Time/Warner) Poughkeepsie Public Access Channel 23 several times this month. Produced again this year by True Video Productions, the program runs nearly two hours and includes highlights from the October 16th event, including the crowning of the 2017 Duke and Duchess of Dutchess County. Watch for it every Saturday this month at 3 p.m., and every Sunday this month at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.
The Senior Prom also will be broadcast on Tivoli-based Public Access of Northern Dutchess Area (PANDA) channel 23 during the month and can be live streamed from their website (www.pandatv23.org/). A YouTube video of the Senior Prom is also available at www.dutchessny.gov/aging.
SEEKING WWII/KOREA VETERANS FOR SPRING 2018 HONOR FLIGHT
Hudson Valley Honor Flight (www.hvhonorflight.com, (845) 391-0076) is looking for World War II and Korean War veterans for the Honor Flight that’s flying out in Spring of 2018. A two-page application is involved which includes inquiries about various medical conditions. Get in touch with them to find out more.
DUTCHESS COUNTY EMERGENCY RESPONSE CITIZEN PREPAREDNESS WORKSHOP IN TIVOLI
Tivoli Village Hall (86 Broadway) is hosting an Emergency Response Citizen Preparedness Workshop this Tuesday, December 12, 2017, with registration beginning at5:30 p.m. and the event running 6 – 8 p.m. on the third floor of Village Hall.
The two-hour training session is designed to provide participants with the tools and resources to better prepare for any type of disaster. Participants will learn how to respond accordingly in a disaster and recover as quickly as possible to pre-disaster conditions. The training program is being provided by the Dutchess County Departments of Emergency Response and Behavioral and Community Health.
The event is open to the public and free to attend. Each family will receive a free Citizen Preparedness Starter Kit. This training session is part of the Dutchess County Department of Emergency Response’s citizen preparedness training initiative which is being offered regionally throughout Dutchess County in 2017. Dutchess County’s Medical Reserve Corps and the Dutchess County Animal Response Team will be present as part of the training.
For more information, contact the Tivoli Library at (845) 757-3771.
YOU ARE THE HELP UNTIL HELP ARRIVES (12/14)
The Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) of Dutchess County will offer two free programs on Active Shooter Preparedness on Thursday, December 14th, at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m., at the Poughkeepsie Library District’s Boardman Road Branch Library (141 Boardman Road, Poughkeepsie). A video presentation of “You Are the Help Until Help Arrives,” which explains how residents should respond to a life-threatening situation, will also be shown. The trainings are free and open to the public. Seating is limited, and reservations are required.
Both programs will be presented by Dutchess County Deputy Sherriff Arthur Hart and will focus on how the average citizen should respond if an active shooter is in your vicinity, how to best protect yourself depending on the scenario, and what to expect when law enforcement arrives.
Demand for this training from the public has been high, and seating is limited. Those who wish to attend either presentation must pre-register. To reserve a seat at either the 3 p.m. or 7 p.m. training, please contact MRC Coordinator Joe Ryan at jryan@dutchessny.gov or (845) 486-2493.
DECEMBER CAREGIVER WORKSHOP MEETS MONDAY 12/18
MidHudson Regional Home Care hosts their monthly Caregiver Workshop on Monday, December 18th at 5-6 p.m. at their 26 IBM Road offices in Poughkeepsie. Advance registration is required for this free event at (845) 483-5551.
This program is funded in part by the U.S. Administration on Aging, New York State Office for the Aging and Dutchess County Office for the Aging.
DICKENS MEETS SCROOGE AT TEMPLE BETH-EL (12/20)
Meet “Charles Dickens,” in the persona of local actor/writer/director Frank Marquette, who will recite his most famous holiday story, A Christmas
Carol, at the December 20th weekly meeting of the Learn and Lunch Bunch at Temple Beth-El (118 S. Grand Ave., Poughkeepsie, (845) 471-9817 or 471-9811 for schedule/details).
Bonus: the second annual Ugly Sweater contest.
“IN STITCHES” MEETS AT DOVER LIBRARY (12/20)
Open to all patrons interested in needlecrafts, at the Dover Plains Library (1797 Route 22, Wingdale, library@doverlib.org). Bring your project to work on, see what other patrons are doing, shoot the breeze, and hopefully you’ll be “In Stitches”. Call (845) 832-6605 for more info.
Other aging news online:
Cataract surgery may have benefits well beyond improved vision: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/04/well/live/cataract-surgery-may-prolong-your-life.html
Bullying can be an issue in assisted-living facilities: http://www.nextavenue.org/bullying-assisted-living/
In Finland it’s the postal service that helps seniors get around outdoors during the winter, which can be fierce in a place like Finland: http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-news-from-elsewhere-38105231
In the UK the home-heating assistance program for seniors is open to every senior, which leads to awkward situations like 69-year-old rock legend Robert Plant (Led Zeppelin) wondering why he’s getting £300 from the government. Maybe it’s because he comes from the land of the ice and snow: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/12/05/robert-plant-do-get-winter-fuel-payment/?utm_source=fark&utm_medium=website&utm_content=link&ICID=ref_fark
Reports of Kirk Douglas’ death last week were untrue. He did indeed make it to age 101 a few days ago: https://www.snopes.com/kirk-douglas-death-hoax/
Successful aging – for spacecraft: http://www.skyandtelescope.com/astronomy-news/voyager-1-fires-dormant-thrusters-in-deep-space/
This week in senior birthdays:
12/11: Businessman/philanthropist Aaron Feuerstein (92)
12/12: Game show host/animal advocate Bob Barker (94)
12/13: Actor/singer/dancer Dick Van Dyke (92)
World’s oldest man Francisco Núñez Olivera (113)
12/14: Tennis player Stan Smith (71)
12/15: Physicist/mathematician Freeman Dyson (94)
Oldest living New York Yankee Eddie Robinson (97)
12/16: Singer/songwriter Benny Andersson (Abba) (71)
12/17: Pope Francis (81)
Brian Jones
Outreach Coordinator
Dutchess County Office For the Aging
27 High Street
Poughkeepsie NY 12601
Phone: (845) 486-2555 Fax: (845) 486-2571
Email: bjones@dutchessny.gov
