Cecily O'Connor
RedwoodAge.com

Any caregiver knows how tricky it is to navigate the minefield of questions that come up when tending to an older friend or family member.

Some of the hardest issues often relate to the benefits and resources available to older adults through Medicare, the federal health insurance program.

The down US economy has been taking a toll on family caregivers who are under greater stress, due, in part, to salary cuts and job loss. So, the ability to simplify the Medicare bureaucracy is growing more crucial to a caregivers' well-being. 

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) recently expanded its web site to include "Medicare Basics" for the nation's 44 million caregivers. The basics include information on enrollment, prescription drug coverage, understanding billing, and what's covered at the various levels of insurance, among other topics.

In addition to NIH, Medicare also features a special section on its web site aimed at caregivers. It covers many of the same basics as NIH, but also includes a nursing home compare feature for rating thousands of US facilities.

Informed Advocates
The need to better understand Medicare is important at a time when concerns are rampant about the program's financial health. Government officials recent reported the trust funds that support Medicare and Social Security have crumbled due to the recession and will become insolvent earlier than expected.

"A caregiver who is knowledgeable about Medicare can be an informed advocate for an older loved one who needs to access the benefits the program provides," said says Marie Bernard, deputy director of the National Institute on Aging.

Information on the NIH site can be accessed in a number of formats, including various large-print type sizes, open-captioned videos and an audio version. Additional topics coming soon to the site include dry eye, periodontal disease and long-term care.