Healthy Aging Resources from the EPA

Online Order Forms for Aging and Health Resources

Is your community interested in information about healthy aging? The EPA website is a great resource for healthy aging fact sheets that you can order to keep your community informed.  Several topics are addressed, including diabetes and environmental hazards, health effects of ultraviolet radiation, women and environmental health, and many more.

More information on the factsheets can be found here: http://www.epa.gov/aging/factsheets/index.htm .

Fact sheets may be ordered in a variety of languages and formats here: http://epa.gov/research/aging/factsheets/order.htm.

Wishing you and your community a healthy and happy fall!

ReelAbilities Film Festival

Pittsburgh Film Festival Brings New Perspective to People with Disabilities

JFilm: The Pittsburgh Jewish Film Forum and FISA Foundation will co-present the 1^st Pittsburgh ReelAbilities Film Festival, which showcases films about the lives, stories, and artistic expression of people with different disabilities.

The Festival kicks off on Saturday, October 26, 2013, at the Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild and will continue through Tuesday, October 29, 2013, at the Human Engineering Resource Laboratory at Bakery Square, Rodef Shalom Congregation and the Frick Fine Arts Auditorium on the University of Pittsburgh campus. All venues have been chosen for their accessibility.

Seven films have been selected for their quality, diversity and for challenging perceptions about the lives of people with disabilities in thought-provoking ways. The films feature actors with a broad range of disabilities (intellectual, sensory, physical and mental health) and touch on universal themes of community, family, love, search for meaning, and interdependence as well as the unique experience of living with a disability. The films include both documentaries and narratives from a variety of countries, and each film will be accompanied by tailored supplemental programming, including speakers, panel discussions, and art installations.

Film titles and supplemental programming will be available in September at www.Pittsburgh.Reelabilities.org.

About FISA Foundation - FISA Foundation is a highly focused grantmaking foundation committed to improving the lives of women, girls and people with disabilities in southwestern Pennsylvania. In addition to awarding grants, the Foundation furthers its mission through active engagement in the community - including serving as a collaborator on numerous projects and convening community leaders to address the needs of women, girls, and people with disabilities. More information is available at www.fisafoundation.org.

About JFILM: The Pittsburgh Jewish Film Forum - JFilm: The Pittsburgh Jewish Film Forum presents movies and guest artists from around the world on a year-round schedule to expose Pittsburgh audiences to social, religious, historical and cultural elements of Jewish life in a way that provokes thought and discussion and encourages tolerance and understanding. JFilm is a program of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh. More information is available at www.JFilmPgh.org.

 

Exercise Opportunity for the Community: Moving Day Pittsburgh

Moving Day Pittsburgh

Get moving for a good cause on Saturday, September 28^th, for Moving Day Pittsburgh! Walkers will raise awareness for Parkinson’s Disease as they follow the 1.5 to 2 mile path through Station Square and back to Highmark Stadium. Participants can walk at their own pace and enjoy the family-friendly events  – music and activities at the Movement Pavilion such as yoga, stretching, chair-exercises and the Dance for Parkinson’s class are just a few of the options! There is no registration fee but any funds raised will benefit the National Parkinson Foundation – Western Pennsylvania Chapter and the National Parkinson Foundation. Participants may sign up as an individual or a team.

Where:  Highmark Stadium

When:  Saturday, September 28^th

            Registration opens at 8:30a.m.

            Walk begins at 10:00a.m.

Please refer to the Moving Day Pittsburgh site for more information: http://www3.parkinson.org/site/PageServer?pagename=moving_day_pittsburgh

Exercise Opportunity for the Community: Walk to Cure Diabetes

Pittsburgh 2013 – Walk to Cure Diabetes

September is full of opportunities to exercise for a good cause. On Saturday, September 21^st the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation is sponsoring a walk to raise funds for Type 1 Diabetes research. The two mile walk through Schenley Park can be done individually or as a team; walkers may seek donations for their efforts to support JDRF’s research endeavors. Registration is free.

Where:  Schenley Park – Flagstaff Hill, Pittsburgh, PA

When:  Saturday, September 21^th

            Registration opens at 8:30a.m.

            Walk begins at 10:00a.m.

Please refer to the 2013 Pittsburgh Walk to Cure Diabetes site for more information: http://www2.jdrf.org/site/TR/Walk-PA/Chapter-WesternPennsylvania4576?pg=entry&fr_id=2393

Or contact Lara Daly: ldaly@jdrf.org

APPRISE Lunch and Learn / The Medicare Open Enrollment Forum

The final APPRISE Lunch and Learn for the 2013 year (The Medicare Open Enrollment Forum) is coming up on Thursday, October 10th.   In keeping with our established tradition, this Lunch & Learn will be a review of Medicare Part C and Part D plan changes for the 2013 Annual Enrollment Period (for the 2014 plan year).  This is always our most popular Lunch & Learn event, consistently producing the largest turnout from a wide range of social service providers (as well as the entire APPRISE staff).  And once again we are inviting representatives from the insurance companies that provide Medigaps, Advantage plans (Part C plans), and Part D plans for Allegheny County, to discuss changes to the plans for 2014 and answer audience questions.  I’m hoping that you or one of your staff can be available as a panelist for this event.  If you  would like to attend, please email your RSVP by Friday August 30th to mckendreew [at] fswp.org.

LOCATION

The Lunch and Learn will be held at the Human Service Building, 1 Smithfield Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15222 (located downtown at the corner of Smithfield and Fort Pitt Blvd.).

FORMAT

11:30 am – Noon.......Lunch / Greetings / General Announcements

Noon – 3:00 pm.........Presentation of Topic(s) / Q&A

DATE/TOPIC

10/10/2013…………The Medicare Open Enrollment Forum

Consumer Health Coalition Hosting Two Free Trainings on Affordable Care Act

Consumer Health Coalition is hosting two free trainings on the Affordable Care Act.  If you are uninsured and would like to learn more, or you work for an organization that serves individuals in need of health care, then please attend!  Flyers are attached for distribution.

Friday, September 20, 2013 at the Brashear Association (2005 Sarah Street, Pittsburgh, PA  15203) [Download Flyer]  OR

Monday, September 23, 2013 at Lifespan Knoxville (320 Brownsville Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15210) [Download Flyer]

Both are at 1:30 pm – 2:30 pm (sessions are  the same, please register for one!)

 Please join us to learn about the Affordable Care Act and how individuals can obtain coverage.  RSVP to Leslie at 412-456-1877 x200 or please respond to lbachurski [at] consumerhealthcoalition.org with your date choice.  Space is limited.

At the training you will learn:

• What is the Affordable Care Act or “Obama Care”?  
• What is an insurance market place?  When can someone enroll?
• Why do I have to have health coverage?  What is the penalty?
• What if I can get insurance through my job?  What if I lose my job?
• How will I pay for insurance?  Can I keep my Medical Assistance?
• What are tax subsidies and cost-sharing programs?
• What if I have pre-existing health conditions?
• How can I get help choosing the right plan for me?

Special thanks to the Birmingham Foundation for funding support for this work.

PA Demographics and Insurance Marketplace Information for Staff and Patrons

From the Office of Commonwealth Libraries, Compendium / August 17, 2013

Health Insurance Marketplace

This year the State Library of Pennsylvania is setting some priorities and putting focus on topics that are important at the federal, state, and local level. One of those areas is health. With the beginning of the Affordable Care Act (ACT) and the Health Insurance Marketplace, we want to make sure you have all of the information you need to support your communities. We are also going to continue to find general health resources and training to support you and the people you serve.

The information we send will be organized in Health Issues to help you keep track of what we send out.  Health Issues will be sent out via the Compendium, WebJunction and listservs.

We hope this will be useful, and want to hear from you about what works and what we need to tweak to make better.  Enjoy Health Issue 1!

HEALTH ISSUE 1: PA Demographics and Insurance Marketplace Information for Staff and Patrons

Pennsylvania Demographics for the Uninsured

As we get ready to support the people who need help finding information about the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the Insurance Marketplace, we thought it might be useful to know how many uninsured people are in Pennsylvania. According to CMS, there are a total of 1,242,350 uninsured people.

This link provides the number of uninsured totals by county. The totals are by Public-Use Microdata Area (PUMA), which is an area within the state that contains at least 100,000 residents.  In sparsely populated areas, PUMAs are comprised of one or more neighboring counties to total 100,000.  Allegheny County represents about ten PUMAs within the county. We hope this data will help you understand how many people in your regional may be seeking assistance with finding information.

Health Insurance Marketplace - Affordable Care Act

The State Library of Pennsylvania is partnering with Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), PaLA PA Forward and the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to support libraries and the uninsured residents of Pennsylvania with information on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the Health Insurance Marketplace. There is information available now that will be helpful to you and the people you serve.

Training and Materials for Staff

There is a great deal of information on this site for the libraries to use such as training materials, publications and articles about the Marketplace.     

Online Information for Your Patrons Now

There are two links that you should consider making more accessible by adding links to your website now. The sites below are designed to help people understand the Insurance Marketplace and the choices available to them. 

• General Information about the Insurance Marketplace
  Marketplace and Health Insurance consumer site with general information and a place for people to sign up for email updates.  
• Consumer Accounts - Patrons Can Create Now
  The federal government is encouraging consumers to visit the Insurance Marketplace and create an account now, so that when it opens on October 1st for enrollment, people will already be signed up.