Building your referral list

No advocate does everything. A short, current referral list protects clients and keeps you within your scope.

Start with these in your client's state: the State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) for Medicare questions, the state insurance department for complaints about state-regulated plans, the state Medicaid office, local legal aid and the long-term care ombudsman.

Keep it current. Note the date you last checked each contact, and link to official locators rather than copying phone numbers that change.

See PARC's referral & state help page for official finders.

Sources: SHIP (opens in a new tab); Eldercare Locator (opens in a new tab); LawHelp.org (opens in a new tab).