Author: Manager

Iowa Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP) warns that advancements in AI and technology have made scammers increasingly dangerous, worsening the impact of Medicare fraud on older adults. Medicare open enrollment runs from October 15 through December 7, and scammers are actively targeting Medicare beneficiaries with fake plan offers, phishing texts, and impostor calls. Common scams are:

• “New Medicare Card” Offer: Scammers claim to call from Medicare offering a new plastic or chip-enabled Medicare card. FACT: Medicare cards do not expire and are not being replaced with plastic or chip-enabled cards. And Medicare does not provide cards with “special” benefits.
• Threats of Coverage Cancellation: Callers threaten to cancel benefits unless personal information or Medicare numbers are provided. FACT: Medicare representatives will never cold-call, text or email demanding personal details.
• “Too Good to Be True” Benefits: Advertisements or solicitors promising cash cards, free medical equipment, or dramatic coverage upgrades in exchange for your Medicare number. To review options or change your Medicare coverage, navigate directly to Medicare.gov or call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) or visit our the SHIIP website.

To read more, go to Iowa Insurance Division Press Release.

NEI3A has developed a Medicare Open Enrollment toolkit! Please see the following links for various resources around Medicare and Medicare Open Enrollment: SHIP help, Medigap, Turning 65, and SHIP TA Center Facebook page.

Every three years the Iowa SILC reaches out for input from people around the state who have disabilities. This feedback is used to develop their Statewide Plan for Independent Living (SPIL). Please consider taking this survey.  For more information, visit Survey | Iowa SILC.

This information was taken from the HOME Project Newsletter. To sign up for the newsletter, visit Iowa HHS Home Project.

The Waiver Priority Needs Assessment, or WPNA, is an optional way for people on a waitlist to tell Iowa HHS about urgent needs or changes to their needs. To learn more, please visit Iowa HHS WPNA

Iowa Insurance Division Press Release October 15, 2026

The Medicare Open Enrollment Period (OEP) for 2027 Medicare Advantage and Part D Prescription Plans opened October 15, 2026, and runs through December 7, 2026. Ahead of this year’s enrollment window, more than 87,000 Iowa Medicare beneficiaries received notice that their current Medicare plan is being canceled or discontinued in their county. To view the complete Press Release, click here.

The Medicare open enrollment period (OEP) is coming up from October 15- December 7. This is the annual opportunity for all Medicare beneficiaries to review their Medicare Advantage and Part D prescription plan changes for the year ahead and compare options for enrollment starting January 1.
For more information, please go to Iowa HHS Open Enrollment Period.

On Wednesday, September 23, 2026, Iowa HHS posted a Public Notice regarding the 1915 (c) Home and Community Based Services AIDS/HIV, Brain Injury (BI), Children’s Mental Health (CMH), Elderly, Health and Disability (HD), Intellectual Disabilities (ID), and Physical Disability (PD) Waivers. Please see the HHS website for more information.

Join Iowa Compass for a quarterly webinar to learn more about Iowa Compass and how to search the resource database to connect older adults, people with disabilities and complex health-related needs of all ages, and caregivers with services and supports. This webinar will be recorded. The target audience includes Managed Care Organization (MCO) Case Managers, Targeted Case Managers, Money Follows the Person (MFP) Transition Specialists, community-based service providers, and other professionals who support older adults, people with disabilities and complex health-related needs of all ages, and caregivers. Check the Iowa Compass website for more information and to register: Webinars – Iowa Compass

The Iowa Compass resource database successfully transitioned to our new software platform on July 13! Thank you for your patience and support throughout this process. We’ll continue making minor refinements over the coming weeks to further improve the platform.

Exciting changes for Iowa Compass! The Iowa Compass Resource Database got a much-needed refresh and a brand new look. Iowa Compass made the transition to a new database software provider to create a more user-friendly experience for online searches and make it easier to find aging and disability information and resources.

Need help finding resources during this transition? As always, the Iowa Compass team will be ready to help:

1. Reach out to them by email at information@iowacompass.org
2. Call them at 800-779-2001
3. Use the Contact Us page on the Iowa Compass website to start a chat