Be cautious when visiting other website resources. They may have a commercial interest and be biased. SHIBA advisors are encouraged to use current and trusted resources for background information and research, and to answer counseling questions about Medicare. The resources below are trusted and comprehensive.
Medicare.gov (www.medicare.gov)
This is the official beneficiary-friendly website that covers all aspects of Medicare from when and how to sign up for Medicare, find and compare doctors, see if a service is covered by Medicare, to choosing the right plan. It’s a perfect place to start for SHIBA advisors as you provide unbiased Medicare advising.
SHIP TA Center (State Health Insurance assistance Programs Technical Assistance Center) (www.shiptacenter.org)
This resource is intended for state SHIPS, like SHIBA, to support one-on-one counseling and contains an extensive library of resources, courses and videos.
SMP (Senior Medicare Patrol) Resource Center (www.smpresource.org)
SMP is focused on Medicare fraud with alerts, resources and other materials to empower and help Medicare beneficiaries, their families and caregivers to prevent, detect, and report health care fraud, errors and abuse.
CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid) National Training Program (cmsnationaltrainingprogram.cms.gov)
This program contains free, current webinars, training modules, resources in both English and Spanish, self-paced study and videos.
Medicare Interactive (www.medicareinteractive.org)
This web resource is hosted by the Medicare Rights Center and contains valuable toolkits, charts, graphics, case studies, Medicare Minutes, webinars and resources.
National Council on Aging (NCOA) (www.ncoa.org)
NCOA offers a blog, news updates, information related to Part D, Extra Help, Medicare Savings and other great counseling tools, and hosts My Medicare Matters, an educational website designed to make it easier for people to understand how Medicare works.