USEFUL LINKS

The following is a list of links to web sites which may be of interest
to CCR members and visitors

CONTENTS

Regional Information

Medical Help for Seniors

	Federal Programs
	Federal Websites Related to Health
	Veterans Benefits
	NC State
	Buncombe County
	Medication and Prescription Assistance

Creative Retirement and Lifelong Learning Programs

Leadership Programs

Regional Information

Planning a trip to the area? Check out these links…
Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce www.ashevillechamber.org
Asheville Convention & Visitors Bureau www.exploreasheville.com
Retirement Lifestyles in the Carolinas www.retiresouth.net

Media
Asheville Citizen-Times Newspaper www.citizen-times.com
Mountain Xpress Newspaper www.mountainx.com
WLOS-TV www.wlos.com

Government
Buncombe County Government www.buncombecounty.org
City of Asheville www.ci.asheville.nc.us

Sports and attractions
Asheville Altitude Basketball Club www.nba.com/nbdl/asheville/index.html
Asheville Tourists Baseball Club www.theashevilletourists.com
Biltmore Estate www.biltmoreestate.com
Brevard Music Center www.brevardmusic.org

Medical Help for Seniors

Federal Programs

Access America for Seniors
This web site is maintained by the Social Security Administration and offers news, resources, contact information, and other topics of interest to seniors.

Administration on Aging
The Administration on Aging is the federal focal point and advocacy agency for older persons.

Medicare Online
The official U.S. government site for Medicare information. Learn more about Medicare, Medicare plan choices, nursing homes, helpful contacts, publications, and fraud and abuse. Also, search and compare information on health plans, nursing homes, etc.

Social Security Online
This is the official web site for the Social Security Administration. Find out about Social Security services, benefits, and more.

Federal Government Web sites Providing Health & Health Care-related Information

Healthfinder
A gateway site to help consumers find health and human services information quickly. Healthfinder includes links to more than 1,250 Web sites, including more than 250 federal sites and 1,000 state, local, not- for-profit, university and other consumer health resources.

MEDLINEplus
A service of the National Library of Medicine, provides a rich array of evaluated health and disease-related web resources for the consumer.

National Institute on Aging
Promotes healthy aging by conducting and supporting biomedical, social, behavioral research, and public education.

NIH Health Information Page
Provides a single access point to the consumer health information resources of the National Institutes of Health, including the NIH Health Information Index, NIH publications and clearinghouses and the Combined Health Information Database.

PubMed
A service of the National Library of Medicine, provides access to over 11 million MEDLINE citations back to the mid-1960's and additional life science journals. PubMed includes links to many sites providing full text articles and other related resources. MEDLINE is the world's most extensive collection of published medical information, coordinated by the National Library of Medicine.

Veterans Benefits
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs administers many programs for veterans. See their web site for information about benefits, facilities, programs for senior veterans, the facts about enrollment for VA health care and more.

Check out their 1-Stop Service Inquiry Page.

Veterans Health Benefits and Services

Medication and Prescription Assistance

(The following links were provided by panelists during the NCCCR Health Education Series on October 12, 2004)

Partners for Prescription Assistance
The Partnership for Prescription Assistance brings together America’s pharmaceutical companies, doctors, patient advocacy organizations and civic groups to help low-income, uninsured patients get free or nearly free brand-name medicines.

Rx Outreach
Rx Outreach is a new Patient Assistance Program developed by Express Scripts Specialty Distribution Services, Inc. (ESSDS). The program provides qualified low-income individuals and families with access to generic versions of brand name medications.

U-Share
A prescription drug discount card. The U Share Prescription Drug Discount Card provides discounts on all Medicare-allowed prescription drugs. There may be a fee.

Needymeds
A patient assistance programs which provide no cost prescription medications to eligible participants

NC Senior Care
NC Senior Care has joined with the Community Care Rx to combine State and Federal prescription drug benefits for qualifying seniors into one convenient card effective September 1, 2004.

Medicare - Prescription Drug and Other Assistance Programs
Information on public and private programs that offer discounted or free medication, programs that provide help with other health care costs.

Creative Retirement and Lifelong Learning Programs

Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, George Mason University

The Encore Center for Lifelong Enrichment, NC State University, Raleigh NC

Center for Creative Retirement, Sandhills Community College, Pinehurst NC

Center for Lifelong Learning, Blue Ridge Community College, Flat Rock NC

UNCG Emeritus Society, Division of Continual Learning, UNCG, Greensbor NC

Vital Aging Network, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities MN

The Harvard Institute for Learning in Retirement, Cambridge, MA

The Institute for Retired Professionals of the New School University, New York NY

Center for Lifelong Learning at University of Texas - El Paso TX

The Christopher Wren Association at the College of William and Mary, Williamsburg VA

Institute for Lifelong Education at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH