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Help at the Pharmacy: Stefanie Guerrero's Success Story
Stefanie Guerrero is a Medicare Information Specialist for H-E-B,
a large grocery store chain in the Houston, Texas area. Her job, which
was created in anticipation of the 2006 implementation of Medicare prescription
drug coverage, is to assist customers of one of the chain’s 30+
pharmacies with questions about the new coverage. This past November,
Guerrero attended a Medicare training session presented by the American
Society on Aging and Pfizer to learn more about how to help seniors
struggling to understand their options under the new Medicare plan.
Guerrero shared the information she learned at the conference –
including how to navigate the Medicare Web site to compare personalized
plan options – with her H-E-B counterparts at each of the chain’s
pharmacy sites.
For Guerrero’s customers, the one-on-one counseling has made a world
of difference. “They are ecstatic that there is someone that they
can physically talk to about the prescription drug plan, instead of having
to wait on hold for twenty minutes on an 800 number,” she says.
Stefanie Guerrero and her colleagues don’t confine their work to
the pharmacy sites in which they are stationed. They actively conduct
outreach into the larger community by visiting and speaking to groups
at local assisted living centers and churches. All in all, in less than
one month Guerrero estimates she and her colleagues offered Medicare
counseling to 2,500 people in their communities.
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Come to the Pharmacy Prepared
- If you have your new Medicare card, bring it with you. If
not, bring the letter that confirms your coverage.
- If your prescription drugs aren't covered, call 1-800-MEDICARE
and discuss your options with a counselor.
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