“Cha-may weeya ”
Siletz
Community
Health
Clinic
M£&C'neTalk
Disabled Persons Added to Medicare Part B Reimbursement Group
by Judy Muschamp
Thanks to increased gaming
revenue returns, the Siletz Tribal
Council has continued to set aside
gaming revenue funds to reimburse
tribal elders, age 65 and older, for
Medicare Part B premiums.
And beginning July 1, 2003, dis
abled persons under age 65 became
eligible to participate. This benefit is
available to you regardless of where you
live. It’s an excellent program for
anyone who qualifies and if you live
within the 11-county service area, helps
Contract Health Services by shifting the
majority of the cost of physician
services to Medicare.
Here are answers to some common
questions:
Question: What paperwork do you
need so I can receive reimbursement?
Answer: I need a copy of your
Medicare card. This shows that you’re
covered by Part B medical. I also need
a copy of your benefit statement from
Social Security that shows how much
per month is withheld from your check.
Mail these copies to Judy Muschamp,
CTSI, P.O. Box 549, Siletz, OR 97380.
Question: I want to add Part B to
my Medicare. When can I do that?
Answer: You can sign up for
Medicare Part B:
1) When you first enroll in Medicare
(your initial enrollment period).
The initial enrollment period starts
three months before you turn 65
and for seven months after.
2) Jan. 1 - March 31 of each year
(your general enrollment period).
If you enroll in Part B during a
general enrollment period, it’ll be
effective July 1 of the year in which
you apply. Your Medicare Part B
premium will go up 10 percent for
each 12-month period that you
could have had Medicare Part B,
but didn’t take it.
3) Ifyou didn’t take Medicare B when
you were first eligible because you
or your spouse were working and
had group health plan coverage
through your or your spouse’s
employer or union, you can sign up
for Medicare Part B during a
special enrollment period. You can
sign up anytime you’re still covered
by the employer or union group
health plan through your or your
spouse’s current or active em
ployment, or during eight months
following the month the employer
or union group health plan coverage
ends, or when the employment ends
(whichever is first).
Contact the Social Security
Administration at 1-800-772-1213 if
you wish to add Medicare Part B.
Question: When will I receive my
reimbursement from the tribe?
Answer: After your initial check is
processed, you should receive your
regular monthly check the first week of
each month.
Question: Is the reimbursement
taxable?
Answer Yes, in some cases the
reimbursement is considered taxable
income. You'll receive a form 1099
from the tribe.
Moms and Babies Breastfeeding Circle
Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians of Oregon Bieastfeediog Prop
2nd Tuesday of each month,
6 - 7:30 p.m.
Housing Department
Conference Room
Nurture your baby
Nurture yourself
_
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Siletz News
□
by Linda Kreutzer, RDH
October is Trick or Treat Month
Time to Rethink “Sugar Habits”
Everyone knows that when kids eat
candy and drink a lot of pop, they get
cavities. Does this have to happen? May
be not. Let’s explore this a little more.
For teeth, it’s not so much how
much sugar we eat, it’s how often we
eat it that makes the difference.
When we eat (or drink) sugar, the
ever-present bacteria in our mouth
ferment the sugar and form acids. It’s
the acid that eats into our enamel and
causes cavities.
Buffers in our saliva work to neu
tralize acids created by sugar. It takes
our mouths approximately 20 minutes
to clear out the harmful effects of eating
a candy bar. This means the acids are
active for 20 minutes immediately after
eating or drinking sugar (a can of pop
has nine teaspoons of sugar in it!). The
acid is neutralized after 20 minutes and
no longer is harmful to our teeth.
What happens if we sip on a pop
all day long? Our mouths never have
time to neutralize the acid in our mouth.
We’re literally bathing our teeth in sugar
all day long and keeping our mouth a
very acid-like place, where the teeth
have no choice but to yield to bacterial
plaque acids and decay.
But there is something we can do
to help and not give up sugar or pop.
Here’s how:
2.
Contact I jura Duarte or Barbara Danna. RN. at 541-444-1030 or 1-800-648-0449
Sponsored by Siletz Tribal Diabetes Grant
October 2003
will reimburse retroactive to July 1,
2003, until the end of December 2003.
If you have any other questions,
please call either Amie Williams or me
at 1-800-648-0449 or 541-444-1030.
Tooth Talk
1.
You’re invited to come eat,
visit, and learn about the
many benefits of
breastfeeding.
16
People who are disabled and
currently are covered by Medicare Part
B should send us your paperwork as
soon as possible. Since I was late in
discovering this additional benefit, we
3.
Eat a candy bar, cookie, or cake, or
drink a pop and get it over with.
Brush your teeth immediately after.
Don’t let the acids work in your
mouth for 20 minutes.
Avoid sipping on a drink high in
sugar all day (pop). Coffee
4.
sweetened with sugar is just as
harmful as pop. What’s wrong with
plain water? Not a thing! We need
eight glasses every day.
Limit the times per day when sugar
is consumed (maybe one pop per
day at lunch). Diet pop is a good
alternative.
Decay of young children’s teeth,
called “bottle-mouth” or “baby bottle
tooth decay,” is caused by the constant
contact of sugar (from the milk or juice)
on the child’s teeth. This causes the
baby teeth to rot because of the acid
condition in the mouth.
Don’t let the child go to bed with a
bottle (unless it’s water). Sugar in the
milk bathes teeth in acid all night long.
Be sure to clean the child’s teeth before
bed. A washcloth works well. After
age 1, small children’s toothbrushes can
be used.
The No. 1 thing that families can
do to prevent tooth decay in children
and adults is to control sugar
consumption! That means you should
think about how sugar is consumed and
how often each day. Drinking pop is a
habit that can be changed.
The basic rules are: Consume less
sugar, consume it all at once and get it
over with, and brush immediately
afterward if possible. Make sure to
brush both adults’ and children’s teeth
right before bedtime! Visit the dentist
at least once per year. Get your teeth
cleaned twice per year.
Don't let Halloween and daily use
of pop and sweets play “trick-or treat”
with your teeth!