Fwd: Do Medicare private health plans have to follow any marketing rules?

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Topic of the Month:

New in 2009!

This week, in Marci . . .

Volume 7, Issue 49: Week of December 8, 2008

Dear Marci: Do Medicare private health

plans have to follow any marketing rules?

Get Resources: Resources for

understanding your Medicare options. Health Tip: Tips for cooking safely. Survey Says: Long-term treatment for

hepatitis C found ineffective.

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Dear Marci,

I’ve been seeing a lot of ads on TV for Medicare private health plans.

Do these plans have to follow any rules when they market their products?

—Cami (Walla Walla, WA))

Click on the blue, underlined hyperlinks for related

information available through Medicare Interactive!

Dear Cami,

Yes. Companies that sell Medicare

private health and

drug plans must follow certain rules when promoting their

products. The guidelines are meant to prevent plans from deceiving

you—through marketing materials or through someone represennting the

plan—about what the plan offers and how much it costs.. That is called

marketing fraud.

New legislation states that insurance companies may not call you,

email you or knock on your door to talk to you about an offered Medicare

private plan if you have not requested information. It is also

illegal for companies (or their marketing agents) to try to sell you

insurance not related to Medicare (such as auto or life insurance)

when they are selling you a Medicare private health or drug plan.

To find out more about which marketing rules are in effect for

companies offering Medicare private health or drug plans, visit

Medicare Interactive.

— Marci

Looking for past Dear Marci Answers? Have other Medicare

questions? Find your answers with Medicare Interactive (MI), an

independent, public resource of the Medicare Rights Center. MI offers

expert information and advice on Medicare.

Visit Medicare Interactive today!

Do you need individual counseling? Call the Medicare Rights

Center's consumer hotline at , between 9 a.m. and 5

p.m., Eastern Time, Monday through Friday. A Medicare counselor will be

happy to answer your question.

You can also call your

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counseling on Medicare benefits, rights and options. Call

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in Medicare or applying for Extra Help!

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send comments about Dear Marci or suggestions

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Health Tip of the Week

Cooking—and eating—is a big partart of the holiday season, which is all

the more reason to make sure your food is safe for consumption. Although

most people recover from foodborne illness quickly, it can be severe and

life-threatening to older adults, young children and pregnant women. Here

are some easy-to-follow tips to ensure your food brings only happiness to

the holiday table:

Clean: The cardinal rule of food preparation is to keep

everything as clean as possible. Wash your hands with warm water and

soap; clean surfaces with hot, soapy water; and rinse fruits and

vegetables—but never raw meat and poulttry.

Keep the thermometer handy: The only reliable indicator of

doneness for meats that take a long time to cook is your thermometer. For

turkey, the

USDA recommends taking your turkey’s temperature in several places,

including the wing joint and thigh. Both stuffed and unstuffed turkeys

should reach 165° F when a meat thermometer is placed deep in the thigh.

Keep it cool: To avoid bacteria growth—which tends to occur at

room temperature—r€”refrigerate leftovers within two hours. Never

defrost foods at room temperature.

For more tips for safe food preparation, visit the

U.S. Food and Drug Administration and

Health.com. Being careful is a small part of staying healthy. To find

out which preventive services are covered by Medicare, visit

Medicare Interactive.

Survey Says . . .

A new

study in

The New England Journal of Medicine concluded that use of the

drug

interferon as a long-term maintenance strategy to slow the

progression of liver disease associated with the

hepatitis C virus is ineffective.

Results of the study, called the HALT-C (Hepatitis C Antiviral Long-Term

Treatment Against Cirrhosis) Trial, show no difference in the rate of

progression of liver disease among patients who received interferon and

those who did not. In the trial, conducted between August 2000 and June

2007, 1,050 people with hepatitis C who did not respond to initial

antiviral treatment were assigned randomly to one of two groups. One

group received treatment with a type of interferon called peginterferon,

and one group did not. Researchers found that patients on long-term

peginterferon fared just as poorly as those who were not taking the drug.

About a third in each group developed serious complications of hepatitis

C, and eight patients on peginterferon died, compared with two who were

not taking the drug, a statistically significant difference according to

researchers.

Hepatitis C is a viral infection that causes liver inflammation and can

progress over many years to

cirrhosis,

liver cancer,

liver failure and death. The disease affects more than 3 million

people in the United States and 170 million people worldwide. It is the

most common reason for liver transplantation in the U.S.

There is no vaccine to prevent hepatitis C virus infection. The

combination of interferon and ribavirin works for about 40 percent to 50

percent of people with the virus, while the other 50 percent to 60

percent of patients will continue to progress to later states of liver

disease.

For a summary of the study, visit

The New York Times.

To find out about which vaccines are covered by Medicare, visit

Medicare Interactive.

Spotlight on Resources

Find answers to your questions about Medicare health plan options on

Medicare Interactive. For information about services and resources

for older adults and persons with disabilities, visit the

National Association of Area Agencies on Aging. For free one-on-one

counseling and assistance on Medicare and related issues, contact your

State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP). For help getting

screened for benefit programs available to older adults with limited

incomes, visit

Benefits Check Up.

* * * * * *

MRC's Hotline for Professionals

Do you help people with Medicare? Where do you turn to for help? Call the

Professional Hotline, a national service offered by the Medicare Rights

Center to support people serving the Medicare population. Dial

from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern Time for accurate, up-to-date

information and ongoing technical support.

* * * * * *

Need Help Choosing a Medicare Part D Plan?

Check out MRC’s next FREE educational web seminar,

“Comparing Medicare Prescription Drug Plans: The Medicare Drug Plan

Finder†to learn how to search for the Part D plan that best meets

your needs.

Check back on December 11 to view a recording of this online

presentation.

* * * * * *

Newly Updated Medicare Drug Coverage 101

MRC’s Medicare Drug Coverage 101 is an advocate's guide that

tells you everything you need to know about Part D.

Get a

FREE

copy of this great resource.

* * * * * *

Newly Updated Medicare Part D Appeals Help for Advocates

MRC’s

Medicare Part D Appeals: An advocate's manual to navigating the

Medicare private drug plan appeals process offers an

easy-to-understand, comprehensive overview of the entire appeals process,

including real-life case examples.

Get a

FREE

copy of this great resource.

* * * * * *

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