Health fair to offer information in Pahrump on benefits

Area residents looking to gain insight on Medicare Advantage plans are invited to attend an information fair.

P3 Medical Group and other health care providers in Pahrump will set up shop during the P3 Nevada Health Information Fair at the NyE Communities Coalition from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Thursday. The coalition building is located at 1020 E. Wilson Ave. in Pahrump.

Dr. Edward Harding, of the P3 Medical Group in Pahrump, explained the event will allow patients to meet with P3 Medical Group’s providers during the fair.

The fair will also bring awareness to the community about a new open enrollment period for individuals who chose a Medicare Advantage plan during open enrollment from Oct. 15 to Dec. 7, 2018. These individuals can switch, once during a period from Jan. 1 to March 31, to another Medicare Advantage plan or to traditional Medicare.

Harding said this is the first year where patients have had this option.

In addition to meeting some of the local providers in Pahrump, attendees will also get to learn how to get the most out of their current Medicare and Medicare Advantage plan and enjoy food and drinks, according to literature about the event.

The P3 Medical Group providers that will be at the coalition building on Thursday includes Harding and Schadrey Bonds, a certified nurse practitioner.

P3 Medical Group providers will be joined by providers from Goodheart Medical Group and Reflections Healthcare, both affiliate providers in regards to P3 Medical Group’s Medicare Advantage plan it works with: Senior Care Plus, a product of Reno-based Hometown Health—a not-for-profit health insurance company.

Hometown is the insurance arm of Renown Health and services more than 160,000 members in Northern Nevada. The company partnered with P3 Health Partners in 2018 to bring its plan to Southern Nevada in 2019, including in Clark and Nye counties.

“Senior Care Plus has been here (Nevada) for 25 years,” said C.J. Bawden, sales and marketing manager for Hometown Health. “We operate in many northern counties such as Churchill, Lyon, Douglas, Story County, Carson City and Washoe.”

Bawden continued on, saying: “We understand what rural Nevadans face—the difference in service availability and in their health care needs, so that’s why we decided to come to Nye County and open a plan in Nye County, because we understand the challenges they face. And we believe that we can provide a very good experience and product for those individuals living in rural counties.”

Medicare Advantage plans have several benefits above traditional Medicare plans.

“All Medicare Advantage plans must cover everything that original Medicare offers,” Bawden said. “But plans like Senior Care Plus offer dental, vision, hearing aids and gym memberships to their individuals, as well as things like medical transportation. Those are many things that are not covered by original Medicare that our members benefit from.”

A spokeswoman for P3 Medical Group said in an email that “some seniors don’t realize that they can enroll in Medicare when they turn 65 – they don’t have to wait until the Annual Election Period. In addition, there are other special circumstances, such as moving, death of a spouse and diagnosis of certain chronic conditions that can trigger special enrollment periods on a case-by-case basis.”

For more information or to RSVP to the event, call P3 Medical Group at 775-505-0810 or go online to P3NV.org

Contact reporter Jeffrey Meehan at jmeehan@pvtimes.com