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Medicare Preventative Services

PREVENTIVE SERVICE REMINDER

SAGE Eldercare is working with the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services to help Union County Medicare beneficiaries learn more about 19 free and reduced cost preventative care services now covered under Part B.

Prevention and early disease detection are key factors in maintaining or improving quality of life, and the state recently kicked off a multi-dimensional campaign to increase awareness of available preventative health care services, and that out-of-pocket costs for those services have been eliminated or drastically reduced.

The campaign includes radio and print ads, brochures, posters and a wellness pledge card on which beneficiaries vow to call their doctor within 30 days to make an appointment for their first-ever annual wellness visit, a new, free service covered by Medicare Part B. Beneficiaries can also take the pledge on-line at www.wellnesspledge.nj.gov.

At the free annual wellness visit, beneficiaries and their doctors or health care providers develop or update a personalized prevention plan based on the beneficiaries’ current health and risk factors. The visit includes a review of medical and family history; a list of current providers and prescriptions; height, weight, blood pressure, and other routine measurements; a screening schedule for appropriate preventive services; and a list of risk factors and treatment options.

In addition to the wellness visit, the 19 free and reduced-cost preventive services covered by Medicare Part B include:

• abdominal aortic aneurysm screening

• bone mass measurement

• cardiovascular screening

• colorectal cancer screening

• fecal occult blood test

• flexible sigmoidoscopy

• colonoscopy

• barium enema

• diabetes screening

• diabetes self-management training

• flu shots

• glaucoma screening

• hepatitis B shots

• HIV screening

• mammogram (screening)

• medical nutrition therapy services

• pap test and pelvic exam (includes breast exam)

• one-time "Welcome to Medicare" preventive visit

• pneumococcal shot

• prostate cancer screenings

• tobacco use cessation counseling

• yearly "Wellness" visit

 

Download a copy of our Guide for Caregivers to learn more >>