I hope all of you are doing well, as SKIL staff and I continue to serve you the best we can. As the community works to slowly open back up, people want to know what SKIL is going to do.

Because of the nature of who we are—people with disabilities—and because we serve people with disabilities, we are at high risk in the Coronavirus pandemic. With this uppermost in mind, we want to keep our customers and staff safe as government restrictions ease.

So, we are planning to put precautions in place this month to assist in hopefully reopening our doors in June, with the safety nets we’ve learned about during the pandemic. What will this look like?

The safety nets include re-arranging our front office for social distancing and a possible request for wearing face masks. CRO, our Customer Run Organization that is offered in our Parsons SKIL office, will require some physical changes to be made as well as insuring that we have all of our correct procedures in place. We will also be updating some equipment to be better able to provide continuing services, including virtual technology as well as other efforts that the SKIL team and board of directors deem necessary.

Our most valuable resources and assets are always you, our beloved customers. Even though this is an inconvenience for you, we want to be sure that your needs are put first as we continue to deliver our services. Though things will be somewhat different, your safety and wellbeing must always come first. We will continue to be there for you as we forge ahead into the future.

As always, please contact us if we can be of help or encouragement to you in any way.

Love, Shari

Unfortunately, scammers are using the COVID-19 pandemic to try to steal your Medicare Number, personal information, and money. And they're using robocalls, social media posts, and emails to do it.

Remember, if anyone reaches out to get your Medicare Number or personal information in exchange for something, you can bet it's a scam.

Prevent Medicare Fraud

Be on the lookout, so you can stop scams before they happen. Here are recent Coronavirus scams to watch for:

• Robocalls offering you respiratory masks they'll never send
• Social media posts fraudulently seeking donations for non-existent charities, or claiming to give you stimulus funds if you enter your bank account information
• Fake testing kits, cures, "immunity" pills, and offers for protective equipment

Visit Medicare.gov/fraud for more information and tips on preventing Medicare scams and fraud.
Sincerely,
The Medicare Team

As many of our SKIL staff and I continue to work remotely from home, we continue to think of and care about you, our beloved customers. We miss you! I hope you are all doing as well as you are able, as we follow the government guidelines we are under to best protect us during the Coronavirus pandemic.

From almost day one of the pandemic, we have been working on a concerted effort to contact our many customers by telephone—to keep in touch, and to be sure your needs are being met. As you may know, we have over 4,000 customers and much fewer staff, so phoning everyone is an ongoing effort that will take time. We plan to continue this effort as long as necessary.

Have we called you yet? If we have made recent phone contact with you, I hope we have fully addressed any needs or concerns you may have. If we have not yet called you and you have a need or just want to say hello, you’re always welcome to call our office. Our Independent Living coordinators are doing the telephone outreach contacting, and I have been meeting with our staff each week to stay on top of the needs people are reporting that they have.

Our team at SKIL works hard for you. We want to be sure your basic life needs are being met, including: Do you have enough food, medical supplies and cleaning supplies? Are you having a DSW worker problem that your coordinator can help you resolve? Do you have any concerns with your Independent Living coordinator that our office staff can help you resolve? Are you able to communicate well from your home via telephone, Internet or other means?

How can we help you? Please do not ever hesitate to contact us and let us know as soon as you have a need or problem. We love you! Please stay safe and well, daily practicing good hygiene,hand-washing and appropriate social distancing. Stay in touch.

Love, Shari

For a more complete breakdown and explanation to download and print, CLICK HERE.