About the CHOICES Program
The CT CHOICES programs, an umbrella for three core AAA services (Medicare, Related Insurance Counseling, Information & Referral and Benefit Eligibility Screening), provides free, objective, high quality, and confidential information, counseling and assistance to senior citizens and persons with disabilities enabling them to understand and exercise their rights, receive benefits to which they are entitled and make more informed decisions about quality of life issues.
Outreach
NCAAA dispenses program information to seniors and their families through educational activies and health or service fairs throughout their communities at locations such as senior centers and elderly housing complexes. We also sponsor community programs to prevent elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation and assist members of the community to identify and refer at-risk seniors appropriately. On-site presentations can be tailored to any size crowd and any length of time.
Information and Referral
As a one-stop centralized information source for senior services and a referral service, the Area Agencies on Aging can provide direction to local service providers who can specifically address any one of a number of problems or concerns that older persons and their families may be encountering with aging issues such as:
Abuse
Adequate Income
Adult Day Care
Alzheimer's Disease
Exploitation
Family Problems
Health Care Costs
Home Maintenance
Housing Options
Job Training
Nutrition Services
Legal Services
Respite Care
Transportation
Counseling
NCAAA Staff routinely provides general assessment of, and appropriate assistance to, older persons who appear to need resource options. These options may include addressing alternatives to nursing home placement for rehabilitative or long term care or perhaps working through various health insurance options and concerns.
Eligibility Screening
The NCAAA CHOICES Eligibility Screening program is in cooperation with The National Council on the Aging. The Benefit Eligibility Screening program currently screens for state, federal and private programs, which include:
Connecticut Energy Assistance Program (CEAP)
Connecticut Home Care Program for Elders (CHCPE)
Connecticut Medicare Assignment Program (ConnMAP)
Connecticut Pharmaceutical Assistance Contract with the Elderly (ConnPACE)
Food Stamp Program
Medicaid (Title 19)
Medicare
General Assistance (GA)
Property Tax Relief/Renter's Rebate Program
Qualified Medicare Beneficiary Program (QMB)
Reverse Annuity Mortgage Program (RAM)
Social Security
Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines Fund
Special Low-income Medicare Beneficiary Programs(SLMB)
State Appropriate Fuel Assistance Program
State Supplement for the Aged, Blind and Disabled
Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
Temporary Family Assistance (AFDC)
Veterans Programs
CHOICES Volunteers
CHOICES Volunteers are available to meet with seniors, other Medicare beneficiaries, or their families at sites throughout the state or by appointment in an individual's home to provide one-on-one counseling.Counselors do not sell insurance.
New CHOICES volunteers are always welcome. For more information regarding becoming a CHOICES Counselor please visit www.volunteersolutions.org
NCAAA's CHOICES program currently has 87 counselors, consisting of community volunteers, Municipal Agents to the Elderly and professionals from other related fields.