COVERAGE FOR MEDICARE BENEFICIARIES PAYING FOR HEALTH CARE: A COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO HEALTH CARECOVERAGE FOR MEDICARE BENEFICIARIES

THE PENDING PASSAGE OF THE MEDICARE CATASTROPHIC LOSS PREVENTION ACT OF 1987 HAS FOCUSED ATTENTION ON THE NEED TO KEEP THE PUBLIC WELL-INFORMED ON HEALTH CARE AND LONG-TERM CARE FINANCING CHOICES. IN THIS PROJECT, BERKELEY PLANNING ASSOCIATES--BUILDING ON ITS RECENTLY COMPLETED MANUAL FOR LONG-TERM CARE INSURANCE--WILL DEVELOP AND TEST A COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE COMGINING INFORMATION ABOUT THE NEW PRIVATE MEDICARE SUPPLEMENT POLICIES WITH DATA ON PRIVATE LONG-TERM CARE INSURANCE, THE LIMITES OF MEDICARE, AND THE AVAILABILITY OF NON-INSURANCE OPTIONS. THE MANUAL WILL BE DEVELOPED IN BOOKLET FORM AND ADAPTED FOR USE ON MICROCOMPUTERS. THE COMPUTER VERSION WILL ENABLE THE USER TO OUTPUT A MANUAL CUSTOMIZED TO THE SPECIFIC INFORMATION NEEDS OF INDIVIDUAL MEDICARE AND PRE-MEDICARE BENEFICIARIES AND THEIR ADVISORS. IN PHASE I OF THIS PROJECT, BPA WILL ASSESS THE FEASIBILITY OF DEVELOPING SUCH A PRODUCT AND DEVISE DATA COLLECTION PROTOCOLS AND TESTING PROCEDURES TO BE IMPLEMENTED IN PHASE II.