Oakland County provides many fine services and educational opportunities for its residents. Yet many people are unaware of them. This will be our chance to let you know how we can better serve you.
A recent informational campaign vital to seniors has been our West Nile Virus Campaign. The Oakland county Health Department and Lynn Alexander teamed up with the Area Agency on Aging, senior centers, and community leaders to assist seniors with making their environments prevention oriented and learning how to protect themselves. Hundreds of talks were given and videotapes were shown at many locations on tips to prevent the spread of the West Nile Virus. The media joined in to produce a highly successful campaign thus far. Keep in mind, however, that we are not in the clear as yet. We must continue our prevention efforts into next year and beyond.
Another important program for seniors is our Oakland County Prescription Savings Program. Recently a Study Group comprised of county commissioners and executive staff members for the county met to discuss the future of the program. Chair of the group is Commissioner Greg Jamian. Members of the group include Commissioner Bill Patterson, Commissioner Helaine Zack, Senior BOC Analyst Sheryl Mitchell, Deputy County Executive Doug Williams, Director of Risk Management Julie Secontine, and Senior Citizen Advocate Lynn Alexander.
There was unanimous agreement that the county should continue to pay the $6.00 membership fee; although the original contract called for turning that responsibility over to the program recipients at the end of three years (this Fall). There was also unanimous agreement that the county should extend the present contract until learning what will be done at the federal level to avoid duplication.
The results of this study group are great news for Oakland County Seniors. The Senior prescription Savings Program will continue uninterrupted; and the county will continue to pay the membership fee for its seniors. This is yet another example of Oakland County Executive Brooks Patterson and the Board of Commissioners working together to meet the needs of their senior constituents.We have already registered over 22,000 members and have received very positive feedback. If you are an Oakland County resident who is sixty years in age or older, regardless of income, you qualify for help with your prescription costs. This program is absolutely free of charge. Oakland County covers the $6.00 enrollment fee for every member. Express Scripts is our contractor and handles the enrollments for us. Once you enroll in the program, you will receive an Oakland County Prescription ID Card. When you present this card at your local pharmacy you will immediately receive a discount of 15 - 40% off the cost. In a recent study by Area Agency on Aging 1B our card was even competitive with Canadian prices for generic drugs. To learn more about this program and to register, call toll free at 866-731-7213 or check out our Web site at www.oakgov.com.
Oakland County provides many fine services and educational opportunities for its residents. Yet many people are unaware of them. This will be our chance to let you know how we can better serve you.