Ohio seniors say Medicare choices are too hard to navigate

By Farah Siddiqi

For many older Ohioans, choosing long-term care and Medicare coverage is not just complicated, it is overwhelming. A new national report highlights how difficult it can be to navigate aging services, especially for people in rural communities. "Lydia," a rural Ohioan in her late 70s enrolled in traditional Medicare, said comparing coverage options, especially prescription plans, often feels impossible. "It’s hard to compare apples to apples on a telephone," Lydia observed. "They tell you, 'You can go on.' Well, I can go on and look at that but I don’t understand all this stuff. The prescriptions, the tiers – I don't get what I should be looking for." Her experience reflects findings from a new Bipartisan Policy Center report, "What Older Americans Want Policymakers to Know," which is based on interviews with older adults across the country about aging, caregiving, and long-term care. Federal officials said many older adults only engage with the system when they are already in crisis, and the system itself is not designed around how people actually experience aging. Kari Benson, deputy assistant secretary for aging for the Administration for Community Living, said reaching people through trusted, local connections where they are and using their lived experience to guide services is key. "Inherent in the federal Older Americans Act is a nationwide infrastructure that reaches right down to each community – that help older adults remain living well at home," Benson explained. "That shapes the work of the regional area agencies on aging." Advocates said as the population ages, simplifying access to information and coordinating care across health and community services will be critical to helping older Americans remain independent.