If you are an Illinois resident living in Chicago, Rockford, Aurora, Naperville, Peoria, Springfield, Joliet, Elgin, Waukegan, Cicero, Decatur, Arlington Heights, Schaumburg, Evanston, Champaign, or any other city or town, MedicareSoltuions.com has a Medicare insurance plan that best fits your needs, according to your area. This includes, but is not limited to Cook County, DuPage County, Lake County, Will County, Kane County, Winnebago County, McHenry County, Madison County, St. Clair County, and Sangamon County. Medicare insurance plans may change according to your location, so talk to one of our MedicareSolutions.com Medicare specialists who have all the current information about plans according to your area.
Carriers that we represent in Illinois include AARP/United Healthcare, Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Humana, and Health Net. Some Medicare Part D plans available from these carriers for 2009 are Aetna Medicare Rx Essentials, AARP MedicareRx Saver, AARP MedicareRx Preferred, Humana PDP Standard, Humana PDP Enhanced, Blue Medicare Rx Value, Health Net Orange Option 1, and many others.
If you don’t see your current prescription plan in this list, this doesn’t necessarily mean it isn’t being offered for 2009, but it is important to make sure the plan will still be available. Starting in the New Year, Medicare insurance plans from 2008 may be changing according to premium cost, coverage detail, or even may cease to be available. For those Medicare insurance plans that will still be available, premiums will most likely be increasing. Your plan may have worked best to fit your needs in 2008, but coverage may not coverage the exact benefits for 2009. For this reason, it is important to contact someone who has all the necessary information on new rates and plans.
At MedicareSolutions.com, our Medicare insurance specialists are exactly the ones to help you make such an important decision. During Open Enrollment Period, November 15-December 31, you can change your Medicare insurance plan at no cost to be effective January 1, 2009. Our Medicare specialists are more than happy to assist you with a new plan selection, also free of cost. Medicare coverage is important and at MedicareSolutions.com, we want to make the process as easy for you as possible.
Prescription Drug Assistance for Medicare eligible individuals is available in Illinois, known as the Extra Help program. Further assistance is available through Illinois Cares Rx. To qualify for Illinois Cares Rx, people with Medicare must apply for Medicare’s Extra help and be participating in a coordinating Medicare drug plan to maximize benefits. If you are enrolled in a coordinating Medicare drug plan, Illinois Cares Rx will pay monthly premiums for the coordinating Medicare drug plan and help pay other drug costs. You will receive an Illinois Cares Rx card and a Medicare drug plan card, both which you will bring to the pharmacy. In order to qualify for Illinois Cares Rx Basic, you must be single with an annual income less than $24,808 or married with an annual income less than $32,916.
State Assistance Programs
Circuit Breaker and Pharmaceutical Assistance
The Illinois Circuit Breaker program provides grants to senior citizens and persons with disabilities to help them reduce the impact of prescription drugs costs and taxes on their lives.
The program covers approved medications used for Alzheimer’s disease, arthritis, cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, glaucoma, lung disease, multiple sclerosis, osteoporosis, and Parkinson’s disease.
Eligibility requirements to be met include:
- You must be an Illinois resident
- You must be 65 or older
- Your annual income must be less than $22,218 for individuals and less than $29,480 for married people
For more information call (800)624-2459 or visit the Illinois Department on Aging website.
Illinois SeniorCare
Illinois SeniorCare, or Illinois CaresRx is state sponsored prescription drug assistant to people with or without Medicare. There are two plans: Illinois Cares Rx Plus and Illinois Cares Rx Basic. Illinois Cares Rx Plus covers almost all prescription drugs. Illinois Cares Rx Basic will cover prescription drugs that treat 11 common diseases: Alzheimer’s disease, arthritis, cancer, diabetes, glaucoma, heart disease and its related conditions, HIV/AIDS (if eligible for Medicare), lung disease and smoking-related illnesses, multiple sclerosis, osteoporosis and Parkinson’s disease.
Illinois Cares Rx Plus
Eligibility requirements to be met include:
- You must be 65 or older
- You must be U.S. citizens and residents of Illinois
- You must have a total annual income of no more than $24,891 ($33,487 for couples).
Illinois Cares Rx Basic
Eligibility requirements to be met include:
- You must be 65 years of age or older or be aged 16 and disabled
- You must have a total annual income of:
- no more than $25,532 if you are filing an application for yourself;
- no more than $33,877 if you filing an application for you and your spouse or one qualified additional resident
- less than $42,220 if you are filing an application for you, your spouse and one other qualified additional resident or for you and at least two qualified additional residents.
For more information call (800)226-0768 or visit the Illinois CaresRx website.
