Do you provide unpaid care to a family member, friend, or neighbor who has an illness, disability, memory loss, or injury? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you are a caregiver! Are you feeling overwhelmed, constantly worried, tired, sad, easily irritated, and/or extremely stressed? You are not alone and there is support available. If you would like to learn more about resources, tools, and supports available for caregivers, please answer the following questions to get connected to the right starting place.

1. Are you over the age of 18 and caring for an older adult (age 60+)?
2. Are you over the age of 18 caring for an individual (any age) with Alzheimer’s disease or a related disorder (e.g., dementia, traumatic brain injury, mild cognitive impairment, chronic traumatic encephalopathy)?
3. Are you over the age of 55 and living with and caring for a child (not biological) under the age of 18?
4. Are you over the age of 55 and living with and caring for an adult (can be a biological child) aged 18-59 with a disability?

If you answered yes to any of the questions above, you are eligible for the National Family Caregiver Support Program (NFCSP). The goal of the NFCSP is to support family caregivers so they may continue to carry out their caregiving roles and responsibilities. The program can provide services such as caregiver counseling, information and assistance, caregiver training, respite care (a break from caregiving), and much more. If you would like to learn more about how this program can assist you, please contact the Lewis County Office for the Aging at 315-376-5313.

If you answered no to all the questions above, or you are not interested in learning about the resources available through the NFCSP, there is still help available to you through the Any Care Counts – New York (ACC-NY) Campaign which recognizes and supports the millions of unpaid caregivers across the state! Through ACC-NY you can discover your caregiver intensity score by taking the ARCHANGELS Caregiver Intensity Index (CII). It takes just 2 minutes to complete. You will find out whether you are “in the red,” “yellow” or “green,” and be connected to trusted resources.  

Do you prefer to search resources on your own? Visit the NY Connects Resource Directory. NY Connects links individuals of all ages and their caregivers to long term services and supports and provides one stop access to free, objective, comprehensive information and assistance.

The Lewis County Office for the Aging partners with the Volunteer Transportation Center (VTC) in Watertown, NY. This service assists eligible people 60 years of age and older with transportation to medical appointments, trips to the pharmacy, and one grocery shopping trip a month. For further information or to register for the program, please call the OFA office at 376-5313. 

Public Transportation is also available through Lewis County.  For more information on how you can ride the bus, call 315-376-6508 and/or visit the County website.

We provide free, confidential, and unbiased health insurance counseling services to all Medicare beneficiaries and their families as part of their health insurance information, counseling & assistance program.  HIICAP is a federally-funded program from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). HIICAP is administered by the New York State Office for the Aging.

For further information or to schedule a counseling session, please contact the Lewis County Office for the Aging at 315-376-5313.

Our office contracts locally to provide legal services. While the attorney does not draw up wills or contracts, they can provide counsel in areas such as:

• End of life care communications
• Power of attorney
• Consumer fraud
• Insurance claims
• Medicare appeals
• Medicaid hearings
• Landlord/tenant disputes

If you or a loved one in your household are living with a long-term health condition, you can get support through our Health & Wellness program, which is offered through Double Play Community Center.  If you are interested in the following classes, call our office today to sign-up!  

Aquatics – This is a community-based, group program that uses a variety of water-based exercises to increase physical activity among adults with arthritis.  The aquatics program is held at three different local high school pools here in Lewis County.   

Walk with Ease – This group session meets three times per week for 6 weeks. They meet at different locations around the county throughout the year. Trained group exercise leaders begin each session with a pre-walk discussion covering a specified topic related to exercise and arthritis, followed by a 10- to 40-minute walk that includes a warm-up and a cool-down.

This is a medical alert system that can help older adults have the confidence to continue living in their own homes. These devices are worn as a necklace or bracelet and alert others when the alert button is pressed.

The Lewis County Office for the Aging can provide a PERS unit for people over the age of 60 as funding allows.  There is no financial eligibility requirement.  This program is intended for those older adults who would otherwise be unable to afford a PERS unit.