An important reminder: Check your prescription plans

“October is the month senior citizens can review their prescription plans and find savings,” Sally Arter, the information and assistance specialist for the Oxford Senior Center explained. This time of the year at the Senior Center, there will be individual meetings sponsored by the various insurance companies in the area such as Keystone 65, Humana, and Aetna. It’s a good idea to make yourself available for all of these informational meetings. You will receive mailings with dates and times. There will also be opportunities to hear about changes in Medicare and health insurance.

This information may be helpful to you if you are dissatisfied with your current carrier. If you are satisfied with your provider, Arter will be glad to assist you in filling out your renewal forms. If you have any questions, be sure to call the Oxford Senior Center to set up an appointment.

Arter said, “No question is too dumb or insignificant. It is not necessary to renew supplement plans.”

When coming in for any appointment, be sure to bring everything you have received regarding your needs. Bring in a list of prescriptions you are currently taking, too.

“I’d rather you bring in too much than have to send you home for more information,” After said.

Sometimes things can happen with a prescription plan that are beyond your control. For instance, if you are in a nursing home, or living somewhere other than where you normally receive your mail, you may not get information that is sent to you regarding your current prescription plan. Sometimes the prescription plan that currently covers you may be discontinued. If you don’t receive a notice telling you it is discontinued, your prescriptions may not be covered for the next year.

Everyone who has Medicare is required to pay a $250 deductible each year before claims are paid.

Each prescription plan is different and Arter will clearly explain that to you. It is important to check every year. Some plans will cover more than others on the cost of your prescriptions. Some plans will require you go to a different pharmacy, or may not cover one of your prescriptions at all.

Each plan has its own contract with the drug company regarding what they will pay for a prescription. What is paid also depends on whether your prescription is generic or not. You might also save by going to a different pharmacy.

Some people may save thousands of dollars by visiting Arter first. Each year, the payment can change, as can the cost of the plan.

It is important to sit down and talk with Arter about all of the prescriptions you take in order to get the most savings.

If this is your first year on Medicare and even if you aren’t taking regular medications, the cost of vaccinations, or antibiotics may also be a concern to you, so don’t delay. You can reach Arter at the Oxford Senior Center at (610) 932-5244. You can leave a message if she is not available. In today’s world, with prices rising on everything, it is worth it to make an appointment. walking through smoke. And I worked with Bob Ketchum and other council members to increase the Oxford Library and Oxford Area Recreation Authority funding so these institutions can remain solvent.”

She also highlighted the work of Council President Kathryn Cloyd.

“With the help of the rest of council, particularly Kathryn Cloyd, we've started to work toward meeting our MS4 requirements to keep the waterways around our borough clean,” she said.

Birdwell has many more plans for the future if re-elected.

“I want to facilitate more public input into some of the more esoteric decisions about spending and infrastructure,” she said. “We spend a lot of money on projects that could be put off, in an effort to make up for decades of under-investment in our infrastructure. But I feel like we are going too far in the other direction and would benefit from more direction from the borough about what residents’ priorities are.

“I’d like to move more slowly with things like making residents repair their sidewalks, stop investing resources in telling residents what kind of signs or windows they can have in the HARB, and direct our attention to ensuring that critical services and resources educational, recreational, and infrastructure- are met.”

She added, “I’d like to re-establish LTAC, ideally with more input from residents and board members who are passionate about the subject. And I’d like to find a way to bring down policing costs so we can retain our current police force. I don’t think we need to go from our current situation to outsourcing it.”

Birdwell served in AmeriCorps working in early education and as a caregiver for adults with disabilities while she attended college. Later, she ran child care and educational programs in New York City. From 2014 to 2023, she worked as a nurse in hospitals, dialysis centers, and primary care clinics. Currently, she is a nurse practitioner at a local health center that aims to provide health care to residents regardless of income, ability, gender, or any other social determinant of health.

Robert Ketcham Ketcham has many thoughts on the borough and what has been done and remains to be done in Oxford.

“Pauline Garcia-Allen brought many skills to the job of borough manager,” he explained. “‘She is excellent at securing outside funding, so we have done very well in that regard. Under her leadership, we have strengthened our Public Works Department and the administrative team in the Borough Hall, including the Codes Department. The Water Department has made major progress as well.”

However, he sees two big challenges that remain. “One is to build a Capital Replacement Fund,” Ketcham said. “The idea here is that we set aside money regularly so that we build up the funds we need to replace capital items when they need to be replaced. These items include everything from computers and trucks to road surfaces and the driving surface of the parking garage. We are playing catch-up here because borough councils in the past have not set aside money for these predictable expenditures.”

He also spoke about a subject on everyone’s mind: the police force.

“The second challenge is to keep our police force in good shape,” Ketcham said. “We are the victim of market forces here. Relatively few people are going into policing careers and that means municipalities compete for the ones who do.

“Wealthier municipalities offer higher salaries and we lose people to them. We are under pressure to raise our salaries. We are looking at ways to keep the financial impact of this situation to a minimum.”

Ketcham talked about another problem facing the borough.

“We have a small revenue base and that is a fundamental problem for us,” he said. “Most of our revenue comes from property taxes. We can raise or lower our local tax rate but distributing the burden equitably is a function of how properties are assessed, and that is not in our power. We need the state and the county to do their jobs in this area.”

Ketcham also said that the borough has to be very careful in making financial decisions.

“This is always true, of course, but it is really critical in Oxford because of our small revenue base,” he explained. “I do not have special training in municipal finances, buť I do have experience working with quantitative data and with testing ideas SO I think I can make useful contributions here as a council member.”

Ketcham expressed what he felt about several other topics that will be important in the near future.

“We have pretty serious traffic congestion,” he said. “It has worsened as new developments have been built outside town, and more are on the way. We might do one thing helpful if we can create enough space at Locust and Third Street to accommodate a turn lane. Ideas for bigger solutions are in the Comprehensive Plan we finished last year. We should keep holding conversations about traffic, even if we don't have quick fixes at hand.”

Ketcham strongly believes that the borough has a great resource in the Oxford Area Recreation Authority on Locust Street.

“We should encourage people to find out about the park and use it more,” he said.

Good things are coming for the borough and one is the cooperation among current property owners along Niblock Alley to develop second storefronts.

“That is the best news I've heard about downtown since I've been on council. I want to encourage that project. It will make down- town more attractive and enjoyable," Ketcham said.

Matthew Harper Matthew Harper moved into Oxford from Nottingham in 2017 He has very specific thoughts about the borough.

“Right now, I think the most important thing is to save our police department,” he said. “I’d like to see us do a National Night Out and continue to do the community policing our police department does. That is very important.

Harper continued, “I would like to see more business in town. Oxford is now the ‘Gateway to Chester County. We have to increase our Business Infrastructure District to include more of the businesses. I want to see bigger First Fridays.”

Ie owns PA Boy’s Barbecue food truck, and also owns the former Varsity Grill, which he operates from Thursdays through Sundays.

Harper was a former football coach at Octorara and served in the Army from 2011 to 2016. He feels like a lot of changes are coming to Oxford Borough, and he would like to see a younger generation step in.

“I feel everyone should have a voice in the decisions that are made,” he said. “I’m not sure they are all being heard. I would like to be the voice for the people and the small businesses.”

He feels Oxford is a safe town and would like to see it stay that way. He feels that can be done. He loves the diversity in the town and feels that as long as everyone follows the rules the town will be okay.

Harper feels it is time for some changes, buť regionalization of the police department is not one of them.

One aspect he loves about the borough, he said, is that “Everyone looks out for each other.”

Michael Brandt This will be Michael Brandt’s first attempt at running for a political office. His biggest concern is the borough’s financial situation. The second biggest concern he has would be setting the town up for commercial success going forward. Brandt would like to do his best to see the town flourish and he strongly feels he has the knowledge to do so.

“I have a strong sense of community and the drive to cooperate with everyone to make Oxford the best it can be,” he said. “I think it is possible to bring more businesses into our town and expand our commercial district. I think that would be a win for everyone.”

“I believe we can find a common-sense solution to the police issue and other financial concerns,” he said. “I would welcome the opportunity to be a part of the rebuilding after the tragic fire in the center of town.”

Brandt works for Intuit, a company known for helping small businesses, and he would like to bring his expertise to Oxford Borough Council.