Help Navigating a Complex Medical Insurance Bureaucracy

"Mrs. Feliciano" had recently moved to Randolph from out of state. Mrs. Feliciano, a diabetic, had promptly signed up in a local Medicare prescription drug program plan (also known as Part D), disenrolling from her former Medicare managed care plan. But when she tried to fill her insulin prescription, the new plan denied coverage, saying that she was still covered under the old plan. Unable to get her insulin, Mrs. Feliciano fell into a diabetic coma and was hospitalized. After repeated attempts to resolve the problem on their own, her daughters asked GBLS for help.

GBLS took Mrs. Feliciano's case and secured a 30-day emergency supply of her insulin and then navigated her through a maze of bureaucratic and legal obstacles to get her permanent coverage straightened out. A GBLS paralegal  addressed innumerable issues raised by both the old and new plans and produced reams of evidence. GBLS’ advocacy resulted in Mrs. Feliciano qualifying for benefits under the new plan.

Over the past three years, GBLS’ Medicare Advocacy Project (MAP) has helped thousands of Medicare beneficiaries who have become entangled in the program’s complex regulations. In fiscal year 2009 alone, GBLS closed 451 cases, bringing nearly $324,000 in benefits to vulnerable clients who desperately needed help.