April 22, 2009

From the Director's Desk: Spring has Sprung at HAP

After a long winter, spring has finally arrived in D.C. The city is alive with tourists and cherry blossoms! Following two back-to-back intensive enrollment periods, we hope that the spring allows time for you and your staff to enjoy some much needed recharging while you begin planning for upcoming events and programs.

This spring, we are excited to share two important new projects that will continue to support SHIPs: in the increasingly complex Medicare system and in the fast-changing environment in which many of our nation's Medicare beneficiaries find themselves.

Here at HAP, we know that SHIPs work daily to make a difference in the lives of individual Medicare beneficiaries. Now we want to help you make a difference at the "macro" level. HAP recently began a new project to identify and address the persistent issues that affect beneficiaries across the Medicare program as a whole. In addition to identifying and capturing systemic issues that Medicare beneficiaries frequently encounter, HAP will develop trainings and provide tools to help SHIPs address the issues at the individual beneficiary level. We will use the findings from the project to develop system-wide Medicare program recommendations for policy makers and other key audiences to help promote long-term, lasting benefits for all Medicare consumers.

We're excited about working with you, and learning from you, in the coming months to help inform this important work. Don't forget to stay tuned to HAP's monthly eNewsletter and weekly eAlerts for updates on the project, as well as information on how your SHIP can participate. In the meantime, contact us directly with questions or suggestions at SHIPhelp@hapnetwork.org.

In other spring news, HAP recently launched its newest set of Medicare education and training tools – the SHIP Resource Guides. Each Guide covers a specific topic: Medicare basics, Part D, or Medicare Advantage. And they are filled with the latest in Medicare references as well as practical examples and "real world" scenarios. We hope you'll find the latest HAP products useful, and that you'll share them widely in your community.

We look forward to seeing many of you at the Annual SHIP Directors Conference in Baltimore, May 27-29. For those of you who will be attending, please join us at the HAP-sponsored reception on Wednesday, May 27.

Sincerely,
Lee Thompson
Executive Director
Health Assistance Partnership