Colorado senior health advocate offers free Medicare counseling

Knowing the ins and outs of Medicare can be an important part of aging well, but for many older adults, the service can be confusing. The Steamboat Pilot & Today reports that Betsy Packer is helping Colorado seniors who may be unsure about their coverage by providing free counseling to them.


Packer is the Northwest Colorado coordinator for the Colorado Senior Health Insurance Assistance Program, and she expects that as the enrollment period for Medicare draws nearer, the demand for her services will go up considerably.


One of the largest obstacles facing older adults when it comes to Medicare is that many of them do not have regular computer access, which is an important skill for finding answers to many questions.

Additionally, claims, changes and government letters can sometimes be overwhelming.


"I would say 65 to 75 percent of seniors who get these letters in the mail don't understand what they are reading," Karen Burley, director of The Haven Assisted Living Center, told the news source.


According to the Center for Medicare Advocacy, there were 36.1 million people over the age of 65 in 2006 who used Medicare.


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