Dutchess County Office for the Aging’s
AGING NEWS
For the week of July 25th
Older adults living on fixed incomes have been disproportionately burdened by the recent effects of inflation. This year’s Social Security and Supplemental Security Income cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) of 5.9% was the biggest in 40 years, but it only blunted inflation’s effects. When you’ve got bills to pay right now, it’s small comfort that the 2023 COLA is expected to be even larger when it’s announced in October.
Older adults who want to reach out for assistance often don’t know what help is available, or how to apply – and that’s where the Dutchess County Office for the Aging can help. Here’s a quick rundown of just some of what’s out there, provided with assistance from the New York State Office for the Aging.
Find out about the services mentioned below, and more, by contacting OFA at 845-486-2555 or ofa@dutchessny.gov, or looking us up online at www.dutchessny.gov/aging.
HOME DELIVERED MEALS
You may need meals for a short time because you were recently discharged from a hospital and can’t make meals until you recover. Or you may need meals for a longer time because you can’t do many of the things you did for yourself before. For older New Yorkers who can’t prepare meals for themselves, home-delivered meals provide healthy, nutritious, balanced meals to a participant’s residence up to five days a week. Up-to-date information about wellness and healthy eating habits is provided to those who receive meals. Registered dietitians offer private nutrition counseling to older people with questions about diabetes, weight loss or gain, and healthy eating.
SAVE YOURSELF MONEY BY UNDERSTANDING YOUR INSURANCE OPTIONS
You’ve seen the ads and gotten piles of mail, all of it claiming that their company’s health insurance option is the right one for you. They can’t all be right…right? Understanding your insurance options is key to saving money, but where to begin? Try OFA’s Health Insurance Information Counseling Assistance Program (HIICAP). Our trained volunteer HIICAP counselors are available to answer questions about Medicare, Medicare Advantage programs (managed care), Medicare prescription drug coverage, Medigap, and other health and long-term care insurance issues.
You can contact OFA for an appointment with a HIICAP counselor, or you can sign up for one of our in-person “Medicare 101” presentations in Poughkeepsie or Rhinebeck. As we get closer to Medicare’s annual open enrollment period (October 15th – December 7th), we’ll add more Medicare 101 classes throughout the County. You can find an up-to-date calendar of OFA activities at www.dutchessny.gov/aging.
Golden Living is prepared by the Dutchess County Office for the Aging, 114 Delafield St., Poughkeepsie, New York 12601, telephone 845-486-2555, email: ofa@dutchessny.gov website: www.dutchessny.gov/aging
NEED SOMEPLACE COOL? TRY THE LIBRARY
Dutchess County Emergency Management (follow them on Facebook for tips on staying cool) has listed many Dutchess County libraries as county designated cooling sites:
Adriance Memorial Library (City of Poughkeepsie)
Beekman Library
Blodgett Library (Fishkill)
Boardman Road Library (Town of Poughkeepsie)
Dover Plains Library (in Wingdale)
East Fishkill Community Library
Grinnell Library (Wappingers Falls)
LaGrange Association Library
Millbrook Library
Morton Memorial Library (Rhinecliff)
North East-Millerton Library
Pleasant Valley Library
Red Hook Public Library
Staatsburg Library
Stanford Free Library
Starr Library (Rhinebeck)
Check ahead for each library’s operating hours. Not every library is on the list. A listing of all 26 libraries in the county is available by clicking here.
In a pinch, any publicly accessible air-conditioned space can be a godsend when there’s no A/C at home – supermarket, “big box” store, movie theatre, shopping mall, library, etc.
HOME DELIVERED MEALS AND PICNIC VOLUNTEERS WANTED
Volunteer drivers are currently needed immediately, to drive for the Office for the Aging Home Delivered Meals (HDM) program throughout Dutchess County. Specific areas of need include the Cities of Beacon and Poughkeepsie, and the Towns of LaGrange, Pleasant Valley and Poughkeepsie, along with much of rural Dutchess.
Whether you’re available one weekday or five, we can accommodate your schedule. Mileage reimbursement is available for HDM drivers who use their own vehicles; reimbursement rates were increased in July to reflect the higher price of gasoline.
Hundreds of senior citizen residents of Dutchess County live in their own homes but are unable to cook, shop, or prepare meals. They have received essential help from the HDM program, which makes hot, nutritious midday meals available for most locations in the county Monday through Friday, along with frozen and shelf-stable meals for cases when inclement weather prevents delivery of hot meals.
We’re also looking for volunteers to assist guests at any of the following upcoming OFA Picnics. All picnics take place on Wednesdays.
July 27 – Pleasant Valley (West Road School)
August 3 – City of Poughkeepsie (Stitzel Field)
August 24 – East Fishkill (Recreation Park, Hopewell Junction)
August 31 – Beekman/LaGrange (Freedom Park, LaGrange)
To learn more about OFA volunteering, contact the Office for the Aging at 845-486-2555 or ofa@dutchessny.gov.
SHELF LIFE EXTENSION FOR MANY COVID TEST KITS
You may have several boxes of COVID test kits accumulating at home, and you may have noticed that the kits’ best-by dates are coming up or have passed.
Don’t dispose of them yet! The FDA has announced extensions of shelf lives for many brands of test kits. Check the link here.
If you picked up an iHealth brand kit at an OFA picnic this year, the best-by date has been extended by three months, into October for most kits. Click here for more information.
FARMERS MARKET NUTRITION PROGRAM COUPON PACKETS – GOING FAST
Demand has been high for the 2022 edition of coupon booklets from the New York State Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program (SFMNP). OFA will continue distributing SFMNP coupon packets while supplies last. If you believe you qualify and haven’t applied for an SFMNP coupon packet, now’s the time to act. Qualifying residents of senior housing may be able to find out more about SFMNP supplies from their site’s manager.
Coupon packets will be available to walk-ins at our 114 Delafield St. (Poughkeepsie) office only on Tuesdays and Thursdays, from 2 to 4 pm, while supplies last.
For those who cannot get to Poughkeepsie, arrangements can be made to apply for SFMNP coupon packets through one of our OFA Friendship Centers in Beacon, East Fishkill, Millerton, Pawling, Pleasant Valley (Tri-Town), Red Hook, and Wassaic (South Amenia). Contact OFA at 845-486-2555 or ofa@dutchessny.gov to find out more.
Other aging news:
When does an Alzheimer’s diagnosis mean giving up driving? Find out more.
Trying to preserve your teeth? Here are some tips on what’s good…and not so good.
Is there a connection between underactive thyroid and dementia?
Just a video of a bear taking a nap. A big bear.
This week’s birthdays:
7/24: Actress Lynda Carter (71)
7/25: Musician/producer Verdine White (71)
7/26: Singer/songwriter Mick Jagger (79)
7/27: Screenwriter/producer Norman Lear (100)
7/28: Basketball Hall-of-Famer/former U.S. Senator Bill Bradley (79)
7/29: Canadian musician Geddy Lee (Rush) (69)
7/30: Singer/songwriter Paul Anka (81)
These Bad Jokes won’t make the heat wave go away, but they’ll at least distract you for a bit:
It was SO hot…(How hot was it?)
…I bought a loaf of bread and by the time I got home it was toast.
…I saw an early bird get the worm, using a pair of tongs.
…every pair of pants you’ve got are sweat pants.
…I saw a dog chasing a cat, and they were both walking.
…potatoes are coming out of the ground as french fries.
…cows are giving evaporated milk.
…I saw a chicken lay an omelette.
…my car overheated without being driven.
