Medicare's open enrollment period from Oct. 15 to Dec. 7 allows Virginians covered by Medicare to reevaluate their health coverage options and select a plan for 2025.

As health care costs and personal needs change, experts stressed the importance of carefully reviewing the available plans.

Robbie Boyd, director of operations for the Local Office on Aging in Roanoke, encouraged seniors to visit their local office or consult a Virginia Insurance Counseling Assistance Program counselor for assistance. His key advice is to review your current medication regimen and enter it on the Medicare.gov website to ensure you are choosing the best plan.

"Put in your medications, you sign up for medicare.gov, and it gives you the perfect list of what your pricing is going to be for the plans," Boyd explained. "You really need to kind of dissect if your pricing is based on your pharmacy, it's going to be higher, because it's a preferred network, or if it's out-of-network."

Reducing health care costs involves more than focusing on monthly premiums. Boyd encouraged people to explore resources like Medicare savings programs, which can help lower premiums and drug costs based on income. Also, do everything you can to stay healthy like exercising, eating a healthier diet and avoiding smoking.

Dr. Rhonda Randall, chief medical officer and executive vice president of UnitedHealthcare Employer and Individual, stressed the importance of getting a head start on the process because there might be surprises regarding what's covered and what is not.

"Things like dental, vision and hearing," Randall outlined. "Many Medicare beneficiaries might be surprised to know that original Medicare doesn't cover most of those things but many Medicare Advantage plans do. I also recommend people to check for mental health coverage."

She noted the increasing demand for mental health services is reflected in many Medicare Advantage plans, which now cover virtual mental health visits at no additional cost. As open enrollment season brings heightened activity, seniors should also be cautious of Medicare scams, in the form of calls or emails targeting their personal information.

Meanwhile, open enrollment dates vary for other types of health plans. People with employer-sponsored coverage typically select coverage between September and December. And open enrollment for plans on the Health Insurance Marketplace runs from November 1 to January 15. More information is available at www.UHCOpenEnrollment.com.

As Congress considers cuts to safety net programs in what Republicans are calling the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act," a new analysis from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates 16 million Americans, including 140,000 in Colorado, would lose Medicaid health insurance.

Josh Bivens, chief economist at nonpartisan think tank the Economic Policy Institute, said if the bill passes as-is, health providers would see a steep increase in what is known as uncompensated care, when people without coverage get sick but cannot afford to pay their medical bill.

"It means hospitals and doctors no longer receive that income stream from Medicaid payments," Bivens pointed out. "Lots of them are going to be forced out of business and there's going to be closures of hospitals, especially in rural counties."

Republicans have cast doubt on the Congressional Budget Office projections and claimed cutting $715 billion from Medicaid by eliminating fraud and adding work requirements for adults would not reduce coverage. The GOP bill aims to fund Trump administration priorities, including more immigration raids and border wall construction, and extending tax cuts passed in 2017.

Bivens stressed if the bill becomes law, it would result in what he describes as the direct transfer of income from vulnerable families to the richest Americans. He noted the average cuts to Medicaid, which would kick in after the 2026 midterm elections, would be more than $70 billion a year.

"Then if you look at the tax cuts that will be received by just people making over $1 million per year, those are $70 billion as well," Bivens explained. "We're going to take $70 billion away from poor families on Medicaid, and we're going to give it to families who are making more than $1 million per year."

Six Nobel laureate economists have signed an open letter opposing cuts to safety net programs in the budget reconciliation bill, warning the measure would add $5 trillion to the national debt.

While headlines about the latest Trump-Musk feud may catch more people's attention, Bivens added the bill will have the biggest effects on Coloradans.

"I think the fact that six Nobel Prize winners said, 'This is important enough for me to try to draw attention to the implications of this bill,' should make people realize the stakes are really large," Bivens emphasized.


get more stories like this via email

A New Mexico coalition is stressing an urgent need for the state to adopt the strongest possible heat risk standards for indoor and outdoor workers.

New Mexico is the sixth-fastest-warming state in the nation, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists, fueled by climate change which makes heat waves more common.

Carlos Matutes, community advocate for the environmental group GreenLatinos, said 80% of those working in agriculture are Latino, as are 64% of those working in the building trades. He added Latino workers are overrepresented in oil and gas production and need to be protected.

"Depriving them of paid rest periods, of shade, of water during the summer months is unconscionable," Matutes asserted. "We're trying to make sure New Mexico Environment Department establishes these rules as quickly as possible."

Two states, Texas and Florida, have passed laws limiting local governments' ability to require employers to provide water breaks to outdoor workers. In contrast, California adopted protections in 2006. Matutes noted the Environmental Department has already announced the process to consider a heat-protection rule has been delayed and will not take effect before workers endure this summer's heat.

It is not just workers who suffer from extreme heat but also kids in school classrooms.

Whitney Holland, president of the American Federation of Teachers-New Mexico, said the days of putting a box fan in a classroom window on hot days are long past and the number of sweltering days increases each year.

"Thinking through a student's day, from the time they get on the bus, with buses that don't have air conditioning, in the cafeteria, in the library, all of those places," Holland outlined. "If they don't have proper ventilation and good air quality, research shows students feel fatigued, they are unable to focus, all of those things."

As might be expected, Holland added late afternoon, following the lunch break, is when students are most miserable, which disrupts the learning environment. This summer's forecast calls for hotter-than-normal temperatures from coast to coast, according to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center.


get more stories like this via email

Missouri Foundation for Health and its partners are putting $500,000 toward tornado recovery, boosting local relief efforts after storms devastated parts of St. Louis in May.

The emergency funds will help support groups already on the ground distributing supplies, repairing homes, and feeding families - especially in the hardest-hit areas.

Ivory Clarke is the vice president of strategic relations at the Missouri Foundation For Health. She shared the motivation behind stepping up and helping those in need.

"We've seen the effects of this tornado on St. Louis and communities that have traditionally been marginalized," said Clarke. "We've always been focused on ensuring that everyone in Missouri has a fair opportunity to thrive and be healthy."

The funds will be distributed among a dozen local groups that are involved in the relief efforts.

Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe has asked President Donald Trump to issue a federal emergency declaration for the state due to the severe storms. If approved, it would unlock up to $5 million in federal aid.

Following the storms, hundreds of volunteers, first responders, and humanitarian groups mobilized for cleanup and food distribution.

Clarke stressed that her organization's mission is something they can't do alone, and said the effort is rooted in collaboration and collective strength.

"This response involves a network of non-profits, local organizations, and community leaders," said Clarke, "who are all working towards a shared goal of recovery."

Missouri averages 30 to 45 tornadoes per year, although the number can fluctuate depending on weather patterns.

Most tornadoes in the state occur between April and June, with May typically being the most active month.