The following information was taken from the official Medicare Website:  www.medicare.gov

How do I Get Medicare Part A and Part B Coverage?

Many people automatically get Medicare Part A (Hospital) and Part B (Doctor’s Office) coverage.  The most common reason for this is when the person becomes 65 years of age and is receiving retirement benefits  from Social Security or the Railroad.

However, Some People Need to Sign Up for Part A and Part B. (Read on):

If you become 65 years of age and you are not getting Social Security or Railroad retirement benefits yet (for instance, because you are still working), you will not automatically get Part A and Part B coverage from Medicare.  In this case, you must sign up to receive Part A and Part B benefits.

If you are not sure whether or not you will be receiving Part A and Part B benefits, it is a good idea to contact Medicare and/or your employer/former employer and ask for assistance.

If you want to sign up for Part A and Part B benefits, you need to contact Social Security at 1-800-772-1213.  TTY users shouldcall 1-800-325-0778.  If you worked for the Railroad, call your local RRB office or 1-877-772-5772 to learn more about signing up for your coverage.

The main point of this article is:

ASK QUESTIONS.  DO NOT ASSUME THAT OTHER PEOPLE WILL TAKE CARE OF SIGNING YOU UP FOR YOUR MEDICARE COVERAGE BENEFITS.

DISCLAIMER:  The information in this article does not provide a complete answer for every situation, and is not intended as financial, health care, or retirement planning advice.  You need to make telephone calls either to Medicare, your employer/former employer, or your financial advisers to receive in-depth advice.

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Please consider donating shoes, sandals or socks that you no longer use, but are still good enough for someone less fortunate to wear. All styles and sizes are welcome, but we think it would be especially cool if you could donate used designer sneakers similar to the ones in this picture. The more colorful they are, the better. We will be taking your donated items to Mexico next fall, when we go back to the Nuevo Progresso mission site.

Thank you for caring enough to share your blessings with the people of Mexico!

Warning: Some of the medical images below are graphic.

Nuevo Progresso is a small city of 50,000 people that’s located just over the US-Mexico border, southwest of Brownsville, Texas and directly south of Mercedes, Texas. My home church, First United Methodist Church of Bowling Green, Ohio, is a sister church to the one in Nuevo Progresso.

We arrived in Mercedes, Texas, on October 5, 2010. We were housed in a building run by a local Methodist church. In the beginning, 12 men shared one room. By the end of our stay, there were only four men staying in the room. The others moved to quieter quarters because of LOUD snoring on the part of two team members. I stuck it out, but sleeping was sometimes difficult.

Each day, we were loaded into a van and transported across the border into Mexico, which is patrolled by military personnel on the Mexican side. Once on Mexico, our group helped to convert an old, sturdy, abandoned church into a medical clinic with a large waiting room, pharmacy, supply room, three exam/treatment rooms, and a minor surgery room. After a day of setting things up, we were finally able to see patients. In the meantime, I worked with the construction crew, which had purchased materials and was busy building walls and laying tile for the second story of the building.

The people of Nuevo Progresso are poor and live day-to-day. Consequently, there is a high incidence of malnutrition, and many of the children and the elderly also suffer from anemia and dehydration. Since many of the people also have suppressed immune systems, infections are rampant.

The most common medical ailments are diabetes and hypertension (high blood pressure). The medical team evaluated their conditions and decided how best to attempt to control them, with an eye toward potential complications. We also supplied them with enough medication to last until a medical team returns to the town.

When the clinic finally opened, people of all ages lined up outside, waiting to be seen. By the end of the fifth day, we had treated 360 patients and performed two surgeries.

On a practical level, many of the people of Nuevo Progresso don’t have enough money to purchase ordinary items like eyeglasses and shoes. In the future, the medical mission team plans to expand its work by including dispensaries for eyeglasses, shoes and clean socks. I will write more about opportunities to help in those areas in the future.

In general, I found the Mexican people to be very pleasant and grateful for our help, and they made it clear that they love their neighbors to the north. There are plans to expand the medical coverage of this team to two or even three times per year. The next team will leave after the first of the year.