State program helps Ohioans on Medicare save $5.5 million

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Officials say a state assistance program helped Ohioans with Medicare coverage save a record $5.5 million during the fall open-enrollment period.

The state Department of Insurance says more than 38,000 beneficiaries were helped by the agency's Ohio Senior Health Insurance Information Program. The open-enrollment window is the only chance most beneficiaries have each year to find coverage or switch plans the government's program for seniors and the disabled.

The department says the program helped 159,000 Ohioans through nearly 2,000 statewide public events, its toll-free hotline and face-to-face counseling in 2012.

Online:
http://www.insurance.ohio.gov
http://www.medicare.gov