Our Blog

To Smart Phone or not to Smart Phone?

Some of you may have even struggled with the idea of a cell phone at all. You may have laughed at how many young people relied on them. You probably hated it when you finally caved and got a cell phone. Now, you see all your kids, grandkids and maybe even some friends with an i phone, droid or other smart phone.

What can a smart phone really do for you? What’s the purpose? Isn’t a phone just for making phone calls? First it was texting, then email and now apps?? What the heck is an app?

An app, short for application, is a program you order through your smart phone, they can be games, sports or news information and even recipes.

Being the first one to have something new, or being “in the know” can be a badge of honor. So don’t be surprised if friends and relatives want to show you what great apps they’ve downloaded.

 Here are some stats from AgeWave about Boomers and products

• On average, most baby boomers are asked for product or service recommendations about 90 times per year.

• Nearly 90 percent of boomers who were asked to give advice gave it to their fellow boomers.

• Practically all boomers consider their family and friends to be their most trusted sources of information

So, you can see that once a few boomers get their hands on a smart phone and start accessing apps, you’ll be hearing about it and may soon find yourself with one too. Apps are sometimes free or sometimes come with a one-time small fee of anywhere from $1.99 to $5.99 and up. Apps can also be used on i pads or other tablet devices.

Here are 8 free apps that we heard just had to be downloaded unless you want to be considered uncool:

• Dropbox—Dropbox lets you bring your photos, docs, and videos anywhere and share them easily. You load it on your computer and your smartphone then you never email yourself a file again. It’s easy to use and easy to set up.

• Flixster– Read reviews, get customer ratings, see screenshots, and learn more about movies. You can find the theaters, get show times, and watch trailers. It’s fast, visual and easy to use.

• Words with Friends—this app is a takeoff of Scrabble. Play with friends or strangers via your smart phone or tablet. Build words for points, see who scores the highest. Very good to keep your mind engaged.

• Whitepages— Use this free, easy to use app from your smartphone. Find, people, businesses and reverse phone lookups from those unknown numbers that show up on your phone.

• Zite—Users select categories of magazines that interest them. Then as you read articles on certain subjects. Zite sends you more articles on those subjects. You have options to email the articles to others or save them later to read on your iPad.

• The Weather Channel—More than 200 meteorologists provide interactive and hour by hour weather imagery. Great for planning outdoor activities, car washes or snow shoveling.

• WebMD—first aid information, symptom checkers, drugs and treatments, information on various conditions and local health listings. There are also many videos on treatments and common conditions like bad backs, fevers, diabetes signs. An excellent app for Boomers and Seniors.

 • Flashlight—So easy and so helpful. With a single touch your phone turns into a valuable flashlight that can be used to find your keys or read a menu.

Preventive Services

Preventive Services

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a new report showing that more than 5 million Americans with traditional Medicare – or nearly one in six people with Medicare – took advantage of one or more of the recommended preventive benefits now available for free because of the Affordable Care Act.   Medicare wants to raise awareness about all of the important preventive benefits now covered at no charge to patients, including the new Annual Wellness Visit benefit created by the Affordable Care Act.  

 “I am committed to ensuring that the Medicare beneficiaries we serve are aware of and take advantage of their Medicare preventive benefits.” Assistant Secretary for Aging Kathy Greenlee.

According to the report, over 5.5 million beneficiaries in traditional Medicare used one or more of the preventive benefits now covered. The covered services do not have co pays and include mammograms, bone density screenings, and screenings for prostate cancer. 

In 2011, Medicare began covering an Annual Wellness Visit at no cost to Medicare beneficiaries.  As part of that visit, beneficiaries and their physicians can review the patient’s health and develop a personalized wellness plan.  Over 780,000 beneficiaries received an Annual Wellness Visit between January 1 and June 10. Additionally, more seniors have used the Welcome to Medicare Exam this year. The Welcome to Medicare is a one-time preventive health exam available to enrollees in the first 12 months they have Part B.  66,302 beneficiaries had taken advantage of the benefit by the end of May 2011, compared to 52,654 beneficiaries at the same point in 2010 – a 26 percent increase.

The new annual wellness visit can help spark the beginning of an ongoing conversation between patients and their doctors on how to prevent disease and disability.  Patients should take advantage of this time by reviewing their histories and making sure their primary care doctor knows about their other providers and prescriptions. They can also talk about the pros and cons of getting an influenza, pneumococcal or hepatitis B vaccination, or find out whether a diabetes test, a bone mass measurement, or any of several cancer screenings would be right for them.  Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, Medicare now covers many of these services without cost to patients.

  You can find additional information on prevention benefits on line at www.Medicare.gov, and at www.healthcare.gov