WHITE PLAINS, NY -- Westchester County will begin taking applications for Disaster SNAP benefits (formerly known as Food Stamps) from low-income residents who have been severely impacted by Hurricane

The League of Women Voters will hold a candidate event tonight at New Rochelle City Hall.

Candidates for U.S. Congressional District 16 (Engel - Grimaldi)
NY Assembly Districts 88 & 91 (includes Villanova - Otis)
NY Senate Districts 35 & 37 (includes Cohen - Latimer)

For further information, call 715-3916 or 917-572-6654.

Candidates will respond to audience questions.

The meeting will replay on Cablevision Channel 75 and Verizon Channel 28 in the days before the Nov. 6 election.

TARRYTOWN, NY -- Congressman Eliot Engel (D-NY-17) met with Sarah Weddington, the attorney who defended “Jane Roe” in the landmark Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision. The two met at a Planned Parenthood event today in Tarrytown. Rep. Engel, a senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Subcommitee on Health, fought against House Republican attempts to defund Planned Parenthood in the GOP’s Paul Ryan budget plan. More than 90 percent of what Planned Parenthood health centers do is preventive health care, including lifesaving cancer screenings, breast exams, annual exams, and STD testing and treatment. Last year, Planned Parenthood health centers provided care for nearly three million patients and nearly 5 million people worldwide have utilized their services or educational materials.

WHITE PLAINS, NY -- Seniors who want to change their Medicare health plan and Part D coverage for prescription drugs for 2013 can enroll through Dec. 7.

Until that time, they are eligible to move in or out of any type of Medicare coverage they choose. They can also switch to a new health or drug plan or drop their health plan and return to original Medicare. All changes take effect Jan. 1, 2013.

Because Blue Cross/Blue Shield is discontinuing its health plans next year, the county’s Department of Senior Programs and Services (DSPS) has scheduled a special session to help seniors select a new one.

The program, “Medicare: Selecting a Health Plan (Advantage, HMO or PPO),” will take place on Thursday, Nov. 1 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the eighth floor of the County Office Building, 9 S. First Ave., Mount Vernon.

Information on how to select a new health plan will also be discussed at already announced Medicare Basics workshops on Oct. 24, Nov. 15 and Dec. 4 from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the same location. All sessions are free.

Seniors who want help to select the plan that best suits their needs, should call (914) 813-6100 – DSPS’ year-round Medicare Information Line.