The problem is partially related to the mentality of elderly people. Having met Grob109 in person, he is very different wrt knowledge than most elderly people I know. There are many in my local church who I interact with frequently and fall into the uninformed category. Having had a father who was qualified, and was on medicare/medicaid, since I was 13 years old, the issue he would have had would have been related to awareness and more unfotunately, LAZINESS. Grob knows that MISTAKES are one of the most damaging ways to undermine a persons perception. It requires alot more effort to correct a person's percieved misconceptions. My father was no exception to this matter. It would have required someone like myself to doodle out the landscape for my dad, since it would be personal (ie. I had no incentive to benefit from presenting him the material), he would have been more willing to 1. GET IT picturewise and 2. GET IT as opposed to be lazy. Unfortunately, the program is 3 years too late for him as he had rapidly run into the doughnut hole. Local and state authorities are backwards places for reasons I could never understand. I suspect it has alot to do with the type of workforce they attract which is arguably a bold statement. What if they had a McKenzie workforce? I suspect the scene would be very different. It is what it is... The point is there is a complete, NOW solution here. My question would be whether this solution will be available for my generation (40 years away from NOW)... Although, I was curious how it is that Grob is able to qualify??? I thought the requirements were AGE and INCOME BRACKET... Certainly qualifies for the first item, but the second criteria??? Regardless, the achievement is remarkable... MAK!
I'm not American so it doesn't affect me but if he wants help it would have been better to post the attachments directly on the thread so we could click 'print' and 'save target as' and email them to 'our'your congressmen/senators.
The question "What are the requirements to receive Medicare benefits?" is answered on the SSA website here. Note there is a minimum age requirement but income is not mentioned. http://ssa-custhelp.ssa.gov/cgi-bin...std_adp.php?p_sid=AiiQkDHg&p_lva=&p_faqid=400
Getting the doodle sheet onto the SSA site will be a great help, as will spreading it through blogs, newsgroups, etc., and having truckloads of printed info. But I suggest that you also need a website that is the central collection/distribution point for all related info. Also, I suggest that instead of a static doodle sheet that must be printed and worked out by hand, have a simple online calculator that accepts the few fields of input and then displays the calculated results and chart. Google "mortgage calculator" to get an idea of what I'm thinking, and to see how prevalent these types of simple online tools are.
Looks like Bush blew it too on this morning's CNN coverage of his address. He made no effort to outline the distinction between available plans and the gaps that will now be effectively covered. Any comments from Bush may in fact adversely effect the campaign as opposed to assisting it. Bush's biggest mistake was his failure to be specific as opposed to spouting a "promising outlook" for "america's seniors"...