Topics of Interest
Minnesota Health Information Clearinghouse
Topics of Interest:
Low Cost Health Care Resources
See the Guide to Additional Health Care Resources for a listing of low cost health care resources. These include resources to locate low cost clinics.
Dental Care for Children - Free Give Kids a Smile, Free Dental Care for Children. The annual free dental care for children whose families who cannot afford dental care is usually offered the first Friday and Saturday in February. For 2012 the dates are Friday, February 3 and Saturday, February 4. The Minnesota Dental Association web site has details about this service including participating dental clinics. Click on Give Kids a Smile. Each child needs an appointment to be seen.
Health Care Quality and Cost
Information on health care quality and cost in Minnesota is available on a Web site created by the Governor's Health Cabinet. This site includes sections on Comparing Cost and Quality, Assuring Quality Care, Buying Health Care, Managing Your Health Condition, Staying Healthy with links to other resources.
Prescription Coverage
Medicare Part D Open Enrollment occurs each year. During this time enrollees can make changes to their Medicare Part D prescription drug coverage. The dates this year are from October 15, 2011 through December 7, 2011 with changes and coverage starting January 1, 2012. The Medicare web site encourages enrollees to make changes by early December of each year to assure prescription coverage is available right away January 1.
The Minnesota Board on Aging publishes the Health Care Choices for Minnesotans on Medicare booklet with information for seniors. Print copies are available from the Senior LinkAge Line® A One Stop Shop for Minnesota Seniors 1-800-333-2433. The 2012 publication is on line at http://www.mnaging.org/hcc.htm. This publication includes information about Medicare Part D and lists Medicare Part D plans available to Minnesotans. The previous publisher, the Minnesota Senior Federation, ended operation in June 2009.
RxConnect is a service the Senior LinkAge Line® A One Stop Shop for Minnesota Seniors at 1-800-333-3433 offers. They refer to a large database they have to assist Minnesota consumers in locating lower-priced prescription drugs.
Check these Web sites to compare cost and quality of prescription drugs:
- MinnesotaRxConnect is the state of Minnesota's Web site which compares Minnesota prescription drug prices. Minnesota RxPrice Compare allows consumers to compare the local Minnesota price of 400 drugs. Users can search by pharmacy, city, county or zip code.
- CRBestBuyDrugs.org helps users locate information about the quality of a prescription drug, specifically the effectiveness of the drug and its side effects. It also provides information on ways to save money on certain drugs. Their booklet Helping Medicare Beneficiaries Lower Their Out-of-Pocket Costs under the New Prescription Drug Benefit provides seniors with information they may want to use to help lower their drug costs. The web site is produced by the Consumers Union, the nonprofit publisher of "Consumer Reports."
"Low Cost Options for Prescription Drugs," (PDF: 28.45KB/5 pages) lists resources for obtaining lower cost prescription drugs. It is published by the Managed Care Systems Section at the Minnesota Department of Health.
HMO Service Areas
An updated copy of "Service Areas of Minnesota HMOs," March 1, 2012 (481.16KB/6 pages) is now available. This publication includes a list of the counties and maps of the counties each Minnesota HMO operates in and also includes a list of the counties and maps of the counties that each county-based purchasing agreement operates in. Print copies are available from the Minnesota Health Information Clearinghouse at (651) 201-5178 or 1-800-657-3793.
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