Blessing Health System to host first Medicare Advantage open house on Tuesday

QUINCY — The first of nine open-house-style informational sessions on Medicare Advantage plan changes at Blessing Health System will take place Tuesday, Oct. 15, at the Blessing Resource Center, 420 N. 34th.

Seniors and their caregivers are invited to stop between 3 and 6 p.m. to talk with certified staff to help understand the benefits and limitations of traditional Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans in which Blessing will participate during 2025. The staff were trained through the Illinois Department on Aging Senior Health Insurance Program.

Blessing is modifying its approach to Medicare Advantage Plans effective Jan. 1. Blessing Health clinics and doctors in Illinois and Missouri, and its two hospitals, will continue participation in traditional Medicare and will be in-network with the following five Medicare Advantage plans only:

• BlueCross BlueShield of Illinois Medicare Advantage,
• Molina Medicare Advantage,
• Total Retiree Advantage Illinois,
• United HealthCare Medicare Advantage, and
• Humana – Employer PPO plan.

Blessing will be considered out-of-network with all other Medicare Advantage plans.

A growing number of health systems and hospitals nationwide are either ending their participation in all Medicare Advantage plans or limiting their partners as Blessing Health is doing, because of requirements that can limit patient access to timely care.

No reservations are required for the free open house informational sessions listed below. Seniors are welcome to visit a session at any time between the hours listed:

• Oct. 16, noon-2 p.m. at the Blessing Mount Sterling clinic
• Oct. 18, noon-2 p.m. at the Blessing Health Kahoka clinic
• Oct. 22, noon-2 p.m. at the Illini Rural Health clinic
• Oct. 23, 3-6 p.m. at the Blessing Resource Center in Quincy
• Oct. 29, noon-2 p.m. at the Blessing Health Palmyra clinic
• Oct. 30, noon-2 p.m. at Blessing Health Hannibal
• Nov. 6, noon-2 p.m. at Blessing Health Hamilton Warsaw clinic
• Nov. 8, noon-2 p.m. at East Adams Clinic, Golden

The nationwide annual national Medicare Open Enrollment Period for insurance coverage during 2025 begins Oct. 15 and ends Dec. 7.