Stay alert for fraud during the coronavirus national emergency. Con artists like to take advantage of people when they’re distracted.

Con artists may try to get your Medicare Number or personal information so they can steal your identity and commit Medicare fraud. Medicare fraud results in higher health care costs and taxes for everyone.

Protect yourself from Medicare fraud. Guard your Medicare card like it’s a credit card. Remember:

Medicare will never contact you for your Medicare Number or other personal information unless you’ve given them permission in advance.
Medicare will never call you to sell you anything.
You may get calls from people promising you things if you give them a Medicare Number. Don’t do it.
Medicare will never visit you at your home.
Medicare can’t enroll you over the phone unless you called first.

Review your Medicare Summary Notices for errors and report anything suspicious to Medicare.

Compare the dates and services on your calendar with the statements you get from Medicare to make sure you got each service listed and that all the details are correct.
These include the “Medicare Summary Notice” (MSN) if you have Original Medicare , or similar statements from your plan if you’re in a Medicare Advantage Plan. They list the services you got or prescriptions you filled.
Check your claims early—the sooner you see and report errors, the sooner you can help stop fraud. Log into MyMedicare.gov to view your Original Medicare claims as soon as they’re processed, or call us at 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227).
Check the receipts and statements you get from providers for mistakes.

If you think a charge is incorrect and you know the provider, you may want to call their office to ask about it. The person you speak to may help you better understand the services or supplies you got, or they may realize a billing error was made.

If you’ve contacted the provider and you suspect that Medicare is being charged for health care you didn’t get, or you don’t know the provider on the claim, find out how to report fraud.

Check regularly for Medicare billing fraud. Review your Medicare claims and Medicare Summary Notices for any services billed to your Medicare Number you don’t recognize.

Learn more about how to spot fraud.

Report anything suspicious to Medicare.
How to report Medicare fraud
Calling us at 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227). TTY users can call 1-877-486-2048.
If you’re in a Medicare Advantage Plan, call the Medicare Drug Integrity Contractor (MEDIC) at 1-877-7SAFERX (1-877-772-3379).

Have this information before you report fraud:

Your name and Medicare Number.
The provider’s name and any identifying information you may have.
The service or item you’re questioning and when it was supposedly given or delivered.
The payment amount approved and paid by Medicare.
The date on your Medicare Summary Notice or claim.

by the National Institute of Health (NIH)

Deciding to become physically active can be one of the best things you can do for your health. Exercise and physical activity are not only great for your mental and physical health, but they can help keep you independent as you age. Now, let’s talk about getting started.

How Much Activity Do Older Adults Need?

According to the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans (PDF, 14.5M) you should do at least 150 minutes (2 ½ hours) a week of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise, like brisk walking or fast dancing. Being active at least 3 days a week is best, but doing anything is better than doing nothing at all. You should also do muscle-strengthening activities, like lifting weights or doing sit-ups, at least 2 days a week. The Physical Activity Guidelines also recommend that as part of your weekly physical activity you combine multiple components of exercises. For example, try balance training as well as aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities. If you prefer vigorous-intensity aerobic activity (like running), aim for at least 75 minutes a week.

How Older Adults Can Get Started with Exercise

Exercise and physical activity are great for your mental and physical health and help keep you independent as you age. Here are a few things you may want to keep in mind when beginning to exercise.

Start Slowly When Beginning Exercise

The key to being successful and safe when beginning a physical activity routine is to build slowly from your current fitness level. Over-exercising can cause injury, which may lead to quitting. A steady rate of progress is the best approach.

To play it safe and reduce your risk of injury:

Begin your exercise program slowly with low-intensity exercises.

Warm up before exercising and cool down afterward.

Pay attention to your surroundings when exercising outdoors.

Drink water before, during, and after your workout session, even if you don’t feel thirsty. Play catch, kickball, basketball, or soccer.

Wear appropriate fitness clothes and shoes for your activity.

If you have specific health conditions, discuss your exercise and physical activity plan with your health care provider.

Download and fill out the Find Your Starting Point Activity Log to document your starting point. You’ll find space to track your normal activity levels for a few days—try and choose a few weekdays and one weekend day.

Don’t forget to test your current fitness level for all 4 types of exercise—endurance, balance, flexibility, and strength. You may be in shape for running, but if you’re not stretching, you’re not getting the maximum benefit from your exercise. Write down your results so you can track your progress as you continue to exercise.

Make notes about how these test exercises feel. If the exercises were hard, do what’s comfortable and slowly build up. If they were easy, you know your level of fitness is higher. You can be more ambitious and challenge yourself.

Once you start exercising, use the Monthly Progress Test to check in and see how you are improving, and celebrate your successes!

One in four older adults who are 65 years of age will live into their 90s. Although risk of injury increases as we age, aging without injury is possible. Older adults can take specific steps to help keep themselves and their loved ones safe from injury.

The month of May was designated as Older Americans Month to celebrate and acknowledge the contributions of older Americans in every community.

Age Safely

People age 65 and older are at higher risk for injury. Common injuries include:

Falls―the leading cause of injury and injury death among adults 65 years of age and older.

Motor vehicle crashes―the second leading cause of injury death for older adults.

Traumatic brain injury and concussion―commonly result from falls and motor vehicle crashes. Older adults age 75+ are at greatest risk.

Older women using stretch bands

Keep moving as you age.

Safety Tips for Older Adults

Every older adult can take steps to stay safe from injury and remain independent longer. Caregivers can help encourage these steps or assist in carrying them out:

Speak up and talk to your doctor about fall risk. Discuss whether you have fallen, worry about falling, or feel unsteady when standing or walking.

Keep moving and engage in activities that improve balance and strengthen legs (such as Tai Chi) that can help prevent falls.

Have an annual wellness and eye exam. Annual wellness visits are important to maintain health and to prevent future problems.

Have your medications checked by your doctor or pharmacist. Medicines may have side effects that cause sleepiness or dizziness which increase the risk of car crashes and falling.

Use the Medicines Risk Fact Sheetpdf icon to see if any of the medicines you or your loved ones currently take are creating greater risk for injury.

Check your home for safety. Most falls happen at home.

Use the Check for Safetypdf icon checklist to find and fix potential hazards in the home―both inside and out.

Create a personalized MyMobility Plan to help with the challenges that may come with age. Older adults who make a plan are more likely to take action to maintain their mobility and independence as they age.

Celebrate the older Americans in your life by sharing these tips and suggestions to stay injury-free, safe, mobile, and independent longer.

by National Institute on Aging (NIA)

With summer here and temperatures rising, it is important to understand the health risks of excessive heat and recognize the signs of heat-related illness. Being hot for too long can be a problem. It can cause several illnesses, all grouped under the name hyperthermia.

These factors can increase your risk of hyperthermia:

Not drinking enough fluids.

Reduced sweating caused by medications such as diuretics, sedatives, tranquilizers, and certain heart and blood pressure drugs.

High blood pressure or other health conditions that require changes in diet. People on salt-restricted diets may be at increased risk; however, salt pills should not be used without first consulting a doctor.

Use of multiple medications. It is important, however, to continue to take prescribed medication and discuss possible problems with a physician.

Age-related changes to the skin, such as poor blood circulation and inefficient sweat production.

Heart, lung, and kidney diseases, as well as any illness that causes general weakness or fever.

Being substantially overweight or underweight.

Lack of mobility and access to transportation.

Living in housing without air conditioning.

Overdressing, especially in synthetic materials.

Understanding how to respond to hot weather conditions can help lower your risk of hyperthermia. Learn more about hot weather safety for older adults on NIA’s webpage

by Jayson Cohen American Legacy Solutions

The economy that we all wake up in each day under COVID-19 looks a lot different from the one that existed before the virus took hold in the United States and around the world. It has been a major point of reflection for people all around the world. Many are reviewing how they have ran their personal financial life up to this point and reconsidering some of the steps that they have taken. As such, one of the items that some have looked at is their risk tolerance versus their risk capacity. The two are different, and we want to explore why that is.

Risk Tolerance

The amount of risk that a trader is comfortable with taking on is a personal choice and something that each person has to decide on their own. People have different risk tolerance levels often based on factors such as their age, income, and goals. All of these factors can determine how much they want to put on the table because they are constantly doing mental calculations about how much they need that money and how much they seek to earn.

Getting the right risk tolerance level for an individual can help that person avoid some sleepless nights as they don’t have to stress staying up day and night worrying about their portfolio.

Risk Capacity

This is a bit different from risk tolerance in that it is the number that an investor has to put at stake in order to reach their financial goals. This number can certainly different from risk tolerance in a lot of ways. After all, one may not feel completely comfortable with how much money they have to put at risk in order to get to their goals, but that does not mean that the number is inaccurate.

The risk capacity number is determined by a time frame that someone has to actually reach their goals as well as what the exact number of dollars that someone needs to reach the goals that they do have. Knowing this number is important because an investor can take their risk capacity number and try to use it to make themselves feel more comfortable with their risk tolerance number. It is a psychological game that we all have to play with ourselves, but just knowing this number alone can be extremely helpful.

Getting The Balance Right

People fall either on the too conservative or too aggressive side of their risk tolerance. They can review those numbers and see which side of the ledger they happen to fall on. A lot of people need to tone down how much risk they are taking on and realize that they do not have to earn their entire retirement all at once. However, there are also some individuals who need to be told to pick it up a little.

Everyone has different goals and a different length of time to reach them. COVID-19 has put a lot of fear into the market, and many investors are getting too conservative in their approach at this time. This is the wrong move to make. The pandemic does not know when you are set to retire, and it does

not know what your objectives are. You have to review all of that information for yourself and make the wisest choices based on your current state in life and what your plans are going forward.

Consider the way that the world has changed, but understand that you should not be overly fearful because of the situation that exists today.

You can still exercise even if you have a health condition like heart disease, arthritis, chronic pain, high blood pressure, or diabetes. In fact, physical activity may help. For most older adults, physical activities like brisk walking, riding a bike, swimming, weightlifting, and gardening are safe, especially if you build up slowly. You may want to talk with your doctor about how your health condition might affect your ability to be active.

Researchers are assessing the benefit of exercise to delay mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in older adults and to improve brain function in older adults who may be at risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease. Older adults with MCI may be able to safely do more vigorous forms of exercise, similar to older adults without MCI, provided there are no other underlying health concerns.

Being active and getting exercise may help people with Alzheimer’s or another dementia feel better and can help them maintain a healthy weight and have regular toilet and sleep habits. If you are a caregiver, you can exercise together to make it more fun.

Tips for helping a person with dementia stay active

Take a walk together each day. Exercise is good for caregivers, too!

Use exercise videos or check your local TV guide to see if there is a program to help older adults exercise.

Dance to music.

Be realistic about how much activity can be done at one time. Several short “mini-workouts” may be best.

Make sure he or she wears comfortable clothes and shoes that fit well and are made for exercise.

Make sure he or she drinks water or juice after exercise.

Even if the person has trouble walking, they may be able to:

Do simple tasks around the home, such as sweeping and dusting.

Use a stationary bike.

Use soft rubber exercise balls or balloons for stretching or throwing back and forth.

Use stretching bands.

Lift weights or household items such as soup cans.

Exercising with Arthritis

For people with arthritis, exercise can reduce joint pain and stiffness. It can also help with losing weight, which reduces stress on the joints.

Flexibility exercises such as upper- and lower-body stretching and tai chi can help keep joints moving, relieve stiffness, and give you more freedom of movement for everyday activities.

Strengthening exercises, such as overhead arm raises, will help you maintain or add to your muscle strength to support and protect your joints.

Endurance exercises make the heart and arteries healthier and may lessen swelling in some joints. Try activities that don’t require a lot of weight on your joints, such as swimming and biking.

If you have arthritis, you may need to avoid some types of activity when joints are swollen or inflamed. If you have pain in a specific joint area, for example, you may need to focus on another area for a day or two.

Your heart keeps your body running. As you grow older, some changes in the heart and blood vessels are normal, but others are caused by disease. Choices you might make every day, such as eating healthy, maintaining a healthy weight, and aiming to be more physically active, can contribute to heart health. Inactive people are nearly twice as likely to develop heart disease as those who are active. A lack of physical activity can worsen other heart disease risk factors as well, such as high blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels, high blood pressure, diabetes, and prediabetes, being overweight and obesity. Being physically active is one of the most important things you can do to keep your heart healthy. Aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity a week.

by the NIH

You’ve made a plan to be more active, and you’re ready to go outside and get started. But before you do, make sure that you can exercise safely in your neighborhood. Here are a few tips that can help you stay safe as you get moving.

Think ahead about safety.

Carry your ID with emergency contact information and bring a small amount of cash and a cell phone with you, especially if walking alone. Stay alert by not talking on the phone as you walk and keeping the volume low on your headphones.

Let others know where you’re going and when you plan to be back.

Stick to well-lit places with other people around.

Be seen to be safe. Wear light or brightly colored clothing during the day. Wear reflective material on your clothing and carry a flashlight at night. Put lights on the front and back of your bike.

Wear sturdy, appropriate shoes for your activity that give you proper footing.

Walk safely in rural areas.

If possible, walk during daylight hours.

Choose routes that are well-used, well-lit, and safe. Choose routes with places to sit in case you want to stop and rest.

Stay alert at all times. If you’re listening to music as you walk, turn down the volume so you can still hear bike bells and warnings from other walkers and runners coming up behind you.

Always walk facing oncoming traffic.

Walk on a sidewalk or a path whenever possible. Watch out for uneven sidewalks, which are tripping hazards.

Look for a smooth, stable surface alongside the road.

Walk safely in urban areas.

If the road has guardrails, see if there’s a smooth, flat surface behind the barrier where you can walk. If you need to walk on a paved shoulder, stay as far away from traffic as possible.

Watch for bridges and narrow shoulders.

Cross at crosswalks or intersections. Jaywalking increases your risk of a serious accident. Pay attention to the traffic signal. Cross only when you have the pedestrian crossing signal.

Never assume a driver sees you crossing the street. Try to make eye contact with drivers as they approach. Before you start to cross a street, make sure you have plenty of time to get across. Rushing increases your risk of falling.

Look across ALL lanes you must cross and make sure each lane is clear before proceeding. Look left, right, and left again before crossing. Just because one driver stops, don’t presume drivers in other lanes will stop for you.

Check out city parks. Many parks have walking or jogging trails away from traffic.

If you don’t feel safe exercising outdoors, be active inside.

Find local stores or malls large enough for you to walk around.

Walk up and down your stairs a few times in a row. Be sure the stairwell is well-lit and has railings for safety.

At home, do strength, balance, and flexibility exercises.

Try exercises on the National Institute on Aging YouTube channel.

Bicycle Safety for Older Adults

Riding a bicycle is not only a fun family activity, it’s also a great way to exercise. Some people even use their bicycle to commute to work, go to the grocery store, or visit friends and family. When you’re out and about on your bike, it’s important to know how to be safe.

For more information about biking safely, visit the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

For More Information About Exercise and Physical Activity

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
1-800-232-4636 (toll-free)
1-888-232-6348 (TTY/toll-free)
[email protected]
www.cdc.gov