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O F F I C E O N A G I N G A N D I N D E P E N D E N C E P R O G R A M S
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H OWA R D C O U N T Y R E S O U R C E G U I D E 2 0 1 7
Maryland Access Point (MAP) is the name of the information
and resource assistance service of the Office on Aging and
Independence that addresses issues and coordinates services
for older adults and younger persons 18 years and older with
disabilities.
MAP’s main objective - help people navigate and understand
very complicated public and private resource systems or what
are also known as long-term services and supports. Information
specialists assess your needs, provide resource information, and
help you get connected to available resources.
Staff is highly trained and has over 30 years of combined
experience in the fields of aging, social work, and health care.
Two staff are bilingual in Korean and interpretation services are
available for other languages. Staff serves people by telephone,
home visits, at senior centers, e-mail, through education
and outreach sessions or a combination of the above. MAP
Specialists are available for public presentations or events and
provide education on topics such as preparing for the future,
talking with family members about important end-of-life
planning. MAP services are free, unbiased, and confidential.
Tell Me More about MAP
MAP is the “gateway” to Office on Aging and Independence
as well as other local, state, and federal programs. Assessment
of your concerns and questions and then connections are
made to programs such as Family Caregiver Support, Medicare
counseling through the State Health Insurance Assistance
(SHIP) program, in-home assistance options, health and wellness
offerings, senior centers and social day program options,
transportation options, help with financial or legal matters, and
other needed services. MAP staff work in partnership with
many community agencies to help our consumers to connect
to the right services.Types of partnerships we have in place are
with the Health Department, Department of Social Services,
mental health providers, crisis and emergency services providers,
legal service providers, the foreign born community, food or
in-home meal providers, in-home personal care providers, and
many others. One partnership that needs to be highlighted is
with Accessible Resources for Independence (ARI). ARI is
our partner that provides disability-related information and
resource assistance to the Howard County community. MAP
and ARI specialists work in tandem to offer the highest quality
access to information and assistance to the aging and disability
communities in Howard County.
Options Counseling – A Specialized MAP Service
A specialized service offered by MAP is that of
Options
Counseling
. If you are in need of long-term services and
supports and are not sure how to start or proceed with the
planning, a MAP Specialist can help you with the process.The
Specialist will talk with you about your needs, available supports,
preference, strengths, and values. Individual goals are decided
with you along with determining which private and or public
programs are available to meet your short and long-term care
needs based on your income level.
Samples of MAP Consumer Situations
Mrs. S., an 82 year old, has been divorced for many years.
She has two children, one who lives in California and the
other who lives inVirginia with his wife and children. She
lives in a senior apartment building. Her income is limited
and she is having trouble making ends meet on a monthly
basis. Her health is not as good as it once was and she is on
several prescription medicines. She is finds it hard to pay for
her medicines and she sometimes cuts them in half or skips a
few doses to make them last longer. She has been afraid to talk
with her doctor, as he is “so busy I don’t want to bother him.”
Ms. S. is also having difficulty maintaining her hygiene and
apartment due to poorer health. Her neighbor recommended
she call Maryland Access Point.The MAP Specialist was able to
do an initial assessment of concerns. An appointment was made
to visit Ms. S. at her home and provide Options Counseling
so that a thorough assessment of her needs and then an action
plan was developed. She was referred to SHIP for help with her
prescription drug issue and help paying for her Medicare Part B
premium, Meals on Wheels, SNAP (food stamps) the Office on
Here to help you plan for today and tomorrow...
Maryland Access Point