HARTFORD, Connecticut – There are more than 200,000 military veterans in Connecticut, and a new tool is designed to make it easier for them to access health care through the US Department of Veterans Affairs.
AARP Health Benefits Navigator for Veterans and Military Families launched this month. This is a user-friendly document explaining the qualifications for certain health benefits and how to start the application process.
According to the US Census Bureau, only 26% of Connecticut veterans have used their health care benefits through the VA.
Nora Duncan, state director of AARP Connecticut, said the application process can often be confusing and frustrating, which can prevent many veterans from accessing their benefits.
“We need to help disseminate this information if they don’t have access to care because they don’t know it’s available to them,†Duncan urged. “The guide is really about navigating the application process, which I hope helps people understand that they have more to live healthier, happier lives here in Connecticut.”
The Navigator also provides information on how to get help applying for benefits with the help of a veterans service agency. According to a RAND study, nearly 60% of veterans are eligible for VA health care, but less than half of those eligible use their benefits.
Roberto Burgos, a Manchester-based Connecticut AARP volunteer, served in the US Marine Corps for 25 years. He said the process of finding and applying for VA health benefits should be as straightforward as possible.
“The veterans worked hard and dedicated their service and sacrifice to this country,†said Burgos. “Having access to the right people who can provide the right information will allow people like me to maybe be able to see if there are any benefits to VA health care that would benefit us, especially as we get older.”
AARP Connecticut plans to highlight the social media browser for Veterans Day, as well as Caregiver Awareness Month in November, as the tool may be of use to family members of veterans who support them.
Disclosure: AARP Connecticut contributes to our Fund for Reporting on Budget Policy and Priorities, Health Issues, Hunger / Food / Nutrition, and Seniors Issues. If you would like to help support the news in the public interest, click here.
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DENVER – The use of telehealth services – a combination of phone, video and other online tools – has peaked during COVID shutdowns, and Coloradans are still opting for remote visits, according to new data.
Social isolation and other disruptions have led to a dramatic increase in tele-mental and behavioral health visits. Cari Frank – vice president of communications with the Center for Improving Value in Health Care – said that for some, remote services significantly reduce the barrier of stigma still associated with mental health.
“Especially in rural areas, where everyone can see your car parked in front of the therapist,†Frank said. “If you can do it in the comfort of your own home, it gives you a comfortable space to go and seek these services and get the care you need.”
Mental health services have grown from 37% of all telehealth visits in 2019 to 53% in 2020. Federal and state policymakers have helped pave the way for increased access to telehealth by removing much of the paperwork which limited provider compensation, especially for Medicaid coverage. .
Remote visits are helping hospitals and insurance companies save money, but many doctors have warned against abandoning traditional hands-on in-person visits. Frank said telehealth is probably appropriate for about 25% of health services.
“It’s not something that will replace the fact that the doctor can listen to your breathing through a stethoscope,†Frank said. “But I think we should make sure that we are using the technology that we have at hand.”
Telehealth can include digital monitoring of blood sugar levels for people with diabetes and heart rates for people with cardiovascular problems. Frank noted that remote services can also help more people access health care in the middle of the workday.
“You have to stop working,†Frank said. “Not everyone can do that. So have a 10 minute call with them during a break, if you have a serious problem, and they can just send a prescription to Walgreen’s. I think it’s just more convenient for you. many people.”
Disclosure: The Center for Value Improvement in Healthcare contributes to our Consumer Issues and Health Issues Reporting Fund. If you would like to help support the news in the public interest, click here.
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PHILADELPHIA – Pennsylvania reached a milestone last week with 70% of adults fully vaccinated – but there is still work to be done. A new grant program aims to help community organizations overcome vaccine hesitancy and other barriers.
State Ministry of Community and Economic Development’s $ 5 million COVID-19 vaccine awareness grant program is open to any nonprofit or educational institution in the state and can fund vaccine-related events, volunteer training, and technical support.
At an event in North Philadelphia on Friday highlighting the grant, State Senator Vincent Hughes – D-Philadelphia – cited ongoing vaccine disparities in some areas of the city as the reason for the program.
“If you go to the Overbrook section, 38% vaccination rate,†Hughes said. “If you go to the Logan section, 38% vaccination rate. They are largely black and brown communities, so we need to get the help they need to get the message out and make sure that people are getting the vaccine. “
Organizations can receive grants ranging from $ 10,000 to $ 100,000. The deadline to apply is November 1st.
Dr Elana McDonald is the owner and medical director of Memphis Street Pediatrics in North Philadelphia, and has worked with heads of state to dispel myths about the COVID vaccine.
She said trusted messengers with local organizations are key to improving immunization rates, especially in communities of color that have been abused by the medical system in the past.
“This is our home and it’s important for us to get the message out to people who are like us,†McDonald said. “We understand that there is a huge distrust of the government of the medical establishment. But we are here to say that we are doctors, we are from your community. The vaccine is safe. The vaccine is effective.”
Pennsylvania is seventh in the country for the first COVID vaccines administered.
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LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Ethan Koeler, a Marshall County resident, said he was skeptical of the COVID-19 vaccine. Then the 29-year-old contracted the new coronavirus and was hospitalized for two weeks with a fluid-filled chest cavity and a collapsed lung.
Koeler is now urging fellow Kentucky people to consider getting vaccinated, as part of a statewide campaign titled “Take it from Me” initiated by the Healthy Kentucky Foundation and the Kentucky Medical Association. Koeler said he now believed the gunshot would have prevented him from going to the hospital.
“If I had known that the vaccine would have just removed some of the blunt, I would have had it, because it was so horrible,†Koeler said. “If the vaccine could just help a little that you don’t have to have the symptoms you might have, I would recommend doing it. But like I said, it’s still everyone’s choice.”
So far, 62% of the state’s population has rolled up their sleeves. Woodford, Franklin, Fayette, Campbell and Boone counties have the highest vaccination rates.
Residents who have questions about the COVID-19 vaccine can call the state hotline at 1-800-722-5725.
Koeler said he has made a full recovery and recently received his first injection of the COVID vaccine, as doctors say there is still a chance he could contract the virus again.
“They told me I could definitely get it again,†Koeler said. “And that if I got it again, it would probably get me out. They strongly recommended that I get the vaccine once I was well enough to handle it.”
Dr Neil Moser, president of the Kentucky Medical Association, said he’s seeing cases like Koeler’s Daily. He said he hopes residents will trust their doctors that the vaccine is safe, effective and necessary to help end the pandemic.
“The vaccines,” Moser said, “which have now been available for almost a year, have been given billions of times around the planet, are safe and are very, very effective in saving lives.”
He added that public health experts are working to increase vaccinations in lagging counties – regions with some of the worst hospitalization rates.
“Spencer, Louisville, Christian, Elliott, Jackson, Hart, Ballard, Hickman, Casey and Knox actually have some of the lowest vaccination rates in the country,” Moser said, “not just in Kentucky.”
Since last week, more than 1,300 people with new coronavirus infections have been hospitalized across the Commonwealth, including nearly four hundred in intensive care unit beds, according to state data.
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