Due to the current COVID-19 emergency, services are changing rapidly. Always check with your service provider to make sure they can still provide your services. If you need help to find alternative services, call the Senior LinkAge Line® at
1-800-333-2433.
How we can help
Medicare can be confusing. Our experts can help answer your questions and explore plan options. Each year we can help beneficiaries review their current plan and discuss changes if needed during Medicare Open Enrollment (October 15th – December 7th). We can even help you switch your Medicare plan.
Are you struggling paying for your prescription drug costs?
There are programs to help you with these high costs. Our experts can help you find out if you are eligible and help with completing an application – no matter your age, income or insurance coverage.
Are you or a loved one looking to return home from a nursing home or other setting?
Our experts can help you transition back to the community and help you find resources and services to support your needs.
Do you have questions about housing?
We can explore your housing options and can connect you to community resources that can come into your home.
Do you need help planning for your long-term care needs?
Regardless of where you are in life our experts can help you start to plan now.
Our experts and volunteers can help you fill out the different type of applications and forms needed to apply for programs like: Elderly Waiver, Food Support or Medicaid.
Have you fallen victim to a recent scam or think you may have given some information out about yourself that you shouldn’t have, like your Social Security or Medicare number?
If you have, our experts can help you report the possible fraud.
We have instant access to several State Agencies. If you have a question about your driver’s license or tax questions, we can connect you.
If you are looking to refresh your resume or want to start volunteering in your community, we can help you connect to resources and organizations that can help.
Do you have another question that you don’t see here?
Give us a call and we can get you the answers you need or to the right place to get you the help you need.
Call the Senior LinkAge Line® at:
800-333-2433 M–F, 8am-4:30pm
Calendar of Events — Call 800-333-2433 for more information
News
The Minnesota Board on Aging is proud partner of the University of Minnesota. Together they and many other partners are working to:
- provide greater access to community education in aging and dementia
- improve geriatrics training in health professions
- transform primary care clinical training and practice sites to provide age-friendly care.
The U of M received a five-year, $3.74 million federal funding award from the Health Resources and Services Administration at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program (GWEP). Minnesota Northstar GWEP will work to facilitate and strengthen meaningful support and collaboration of key partners in the geriatrics field.
The Minnesota Board on Aging’s Executive Director, Kari Benson, serves on the Community Advisory Board for the Minnesota Northstar GWEP. Learn more about Minnesota Northstar GWEP.
Assisted living facilities offer a wide range of services and can be individual apartments or rooms that a resident has alone or shares with another person. Minnesota has begun work to develop an assisted living report card, which will help people looking for an assisted living compare their options and decide what best works for them.
One of the first steps Minnesota will take to build its assisted living report card is to gather feedback from stakeholders. You can help them by providing your input on a survey offered by the University of Minnesota School of Public Health, in partnership with the Minnesota Department of Human Services and the Minnesota Board on Aging. It will help weigh the importance of resident quality of life, safety, health outcomes, staff quality and other aspects of assisted living.
In addition to the survey, interested parties, such as counties, health plans, tribes, providers and others can also attend an assisted living report card livestream event next month. The event will originate in St. Paul with an expert panel and be livestreamed to a variety of locations statewide from 8:00 a.m. to noon on Monday, Nov. 4. Participants will be able to learn more about the report card process and provide feedback. To register and learn more, visit www.mnlcoa.org/assistedliving.
To learn more about Minnesota’s assisted living report card, visit the Assisted Living Report Card project webpage, where you can also subscribe to a stakeholder email list to stay-up to-date.
People occasionally receive items in the mail that they did not order. What to do with it can be very confusing. What are your rights and obligations when you receive merchandise through the mail that you did not order?
According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), if you receive unordered merchandise at your doorstep, you are not required to pay for it. Federal law prohibits the mailing of unordered merchandise to consumer homes with demand of payment for those items.
If you do decide to keep the item, it is a good idea to send a letter to notify the seller. This could discourage the seller from billing you, or it could simply clear up an honest mistake. If you do not notify the seller, you run the risk of them notifying a collections agency, which could affect your credit.
If you receive an invoice, reply via certified mail. State that you never ordered the item and that you have a legal right to keep it. Ask that they do not send you any more bills or merchandise. Be sure to keep copies of the mail receipt and letter for your records.
But if you think the unordered merchandise was the result of an honest shipping error, you could offer to return it at the seller’s expense. Contact the seller and let them know you will return the item within a specific time, if they send prepaid postage.
Be aware that charitable organizations may send free items as a way to ask for contributions to their charity. This act is legal, but you are not required to make a donation but may still keep the free item(s).
However, if you entered a sweepstakes or joined a club with the incentive of a “free or trial offer,” you may need to return that merchandise if you decide not to fulfill that contract. Read the fine print before joining anything and keep a copy of the agreement or advertisement.
If you need help with one or more of the issues mentioned above, contact your local U.S. postal inspector, your state or local consumer protection office, the Better Business Bureau or the Direct Marketing Association at 6 East 43rd Street, New York, New York 10017.
Although the FTC cannot resolve your individual complaint, they can take action against the company, if it finds evidence of a pattern of deception, unfair practices or statutory violations.
This article is possible by Older Americans Act dollars from the Land of the Dancing Sky Area Agency on Aging. The Senior LinkAge Line® makes it easy for older adults and their families to find services in their community. Call 1-800-333-2433 to speak with an information specialist.
The Problem
We’ve been hearing a lot lately, about how taking multiple medications can be risky. Many older adults take several medications to manage chronic conditions like diabetes, arthritis and high blood pressure. The way our bodies react to medication changes as we age, too. This can lead to older adults having problems keeping track of their medications and managing potential side effects.
Possible Negative Effects
Taking multiple medications can affect your balance. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reports that one in five falls causes a serious injury such as a broken bone or head injury. There is also the risk of drug interactions. Some drugs interact with other prescription and over the counter medications, while others may interact with certain foods.
How to Help Yourself
The best way to make sure you are getting the most from your medications is to keep an updated list of them. Record all of your prescription and over-the-counter drugs and dosages. Make a note of why you take each one and be sure to jot down any unpleasant feelings or sensations you have for more than a couple of days – they could be side effects or drug interactions. Keep this list with you and go over it with your doctor at every visit.
The Problem
We’ve been hearing a lot lately, about how taking multiple medications can be risky. Many older adults take several medications to manage chronic conditions like diabetes, arthritis and high blood pressure. The way our bodies react to medication changes as we age, too. This can lead to older adults having problems keeping track of their medications and managing potential side effects.
Possible Negative Effects
Taking multiple medications can affect your balance. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reports that one in five falls causes a serious injury such as a broken bone or head injury. There is also the risk of drug interactions. Some drugs interact with other prescription and over the counter medications, while others may interact with certain foods.
How to Help Yourself
The best way to make sure you are getting the most from your medications is to keep an updated list of them. Record all of your prescription and over-the-counter drugs and dosages. Make a note of why you take each one and be sure to jot down any unpleasant feelings or sensations you have for more than a couple of days – they could be side effects or drug interactions. Keep this list with you and go over it with your doctor at every visit.
Download a printable template from ASHP Foundation to track your medications.