Northeast Alabama Seniors To Save on Prescriptions in 2025

Some 3,237 people in northeast Alabama will collectively save more than .4 million in 2025 on their Medicare insurance premiums and prescription medications, thanks to the Alabama State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) administered through the TARCOG Area Agency on Aging. TARCOG is an acronym for Top of Alabama Regional Council of Governments.

This year, the program served 488 more people and saved almost $1 million more than last year during the Medicare Open Enrollment period between October and December, said TARCOG’s Director of Aging Programs Sheila Dessau-Ivey.

SHIP is an important program, because change is inevitable in people’s lives. For example, one client faced $282,000 in medication charges under his existing prescription plan for 2025 because of a recently diagnosed condition. The client’s 2024 prescription plan didn’t cover any of the new medications he needed. After he met with SHIP Resource Coordinator Teresa Hazzard, she found a plan that dropped his total medication cost for the year to $2,000.

There are many plans out there, and they all offer different coverages. Hazzard said she and the other coordinators compare a client’s medication list across the different plans and find the most cost-effective option.

“I love it, because when you look at that savings number, that’s money that is going back into our clients’ pockets that they can spend on other needs,” Hazzard said.

The TARCOG region team responsible for helping with open enrollment included: Hazzard, who works out of TARCOG’s headquarters in Huntsville; Kathryn Kestner from Studio 60 Senior Center in Huntsville in Madison County; Veronica Woodall in Jackson County; Lynn Hixon and Emily McCamy in DeKalb County; Tammy McElroy, Susan Bishop, and Kennedy Cooper in Marshall County; and Heidi Stinnett, Carla Sims, and Helen Carter in Limestone County.

Together, the regional counselors met or talked with 3,237 seniors during the 2024 open enrollment period. The total savings for those clients during 2025 will amount to $3,404,862.06. The next opportunity to take advantage of the free service offered by TARCOG will be during Medicare Open Enrollment, Oct. 15 through Dec. 7, 2025. If anyone has questions before then, they can reach Teresa Hazzard at 256-830-0818.