- County on forms
- Bronx County (Bronx)
- Medicaid run by
- NYC HRA, citywide
- ZIP codes (approx.)
- 10458, 10468
ZIP codes are orientation only. Verify yours with USPS.
Who this page helps
Fordham is one of the busiest corridors in the Bronx, with walk-up buildings along the Grand Concourse, Valentine Avenue, and the blocks between Kingsbridge Road and 183rd Street. Many residents have Medicaid managed care, and every month some reach 65 or the two-year mark on Social Security disability. That is when Medicare begins and, for members of certain plans, a default enrollment letter arrives.
This page is for those residents and for the daughters, sons, and neighbors who translate the mail. It explains what the notice is, what IB-Dual and Medicaid Advantage Plus mean, and how to reach a free counselor from Fordham. It is not from the government, sells nothing, and does not decide who qualifies for what.
What “local” means for Medicare and Medicaid in Fordham
Fordham is in Bronx County. Medicaid is administered by HRA citywide, and there is no separate Bronx Medicaid phone line. ZIP 10458 covers the Fordham, Belmont, and Bedford Park blocks east of the Concourse; 10468 covers Kingsbridge Heights and University Heights to the west (approximate; verify with USPS). On a form that asks for county, write “Bronx.”
Two hospitals anchor care here. St. Barnabas Hospital, part of SBH Health System, is on Third Avenue in Belmont a few blocks from Fordham Road, and Montefiore’s Moses Campus is north on East 210th Street. Each of their clinics, and each pharmacy along Fordham Road, is either in a given D-SNP’s Medicare network or not, and the answer can differ from the Medicaid network you use today. Fordham Plaza, where the B, D, and 4 trains meet many bus lines, makes either Bronx HIICAP site an easy trip.
Fordham is predominantly Spanish-speaking, with Dominican, Puerto Rican, and Mexican communities, plus West African languages and Albanian near Belmont; ask for an interpreter on any line listed here.
How to get free help from Fordham
- Call HIICAP at 1-800-701-0501, say “Bronx” for your county, and ask for a counselor in your language if you need one. Have the letter, your Medicaid card, and your medicine bottles in front of you.
- The Bronx HIICAP sites are Neighborhood SHOPP, 910 East 172nd Street, 1st Floor (temporary address), 718-620-4650, and R.A.I.N. Parkchester Neighborhood Senior Center, 1380 Metropolitan Avenue, 718-597-9220. Both are by appointment; book through NYC Aging Connect at 212-244-6469.
- To opt out, or to ask what happens to your Medicaid plan if you do, call New York Medicaid Choice at 1-800-505-5678 (TTY 1-888-329-1541). Ask plainly: “If I say no to the D-SNP, does my Medicaid plan end?” For most people in a managed care plan, Medicaid then continues as fee-for-service.
- If your Medicaid renewal is late or your case shows a gap, call the HRA Medicaid Helpline at 1-888-692-6116 first; without active Medicaid, none of the dual options apply. For home care questions, NY Connects is 1-800-342-9871.
What to ask, in one sentence each
- HIICAP“I have Medicare and Medicaid and got a default enrollment letter. Can you compare the D-SNP with Original Medicare plus a drug plan for my prescriptions and doctors?”
- New York Medicaid Choice“If I opt out of the D-SNP, what happens to my Medicaid managed care plan and my home care? How do I opt out, and by when?”
- Your plan (number on the letter)“Are my doctors and my pharmacy in the D-SNP’s Medicare network, not just the Medicaid network?”
- HRA Medicaid Helpline“Is my Medicaid active and is my address correct?” (Only if your case, not your plan, is the problem.)
Free public help from Bronx
These lines are run by New York State, New York City, or Medicare. None of them sells plans. When the HIICAP recording asks for your county, say “Bronx.”
- HIICAP (free Medicare counseling)Mon–Fri, 8:30 a.m.–5:00 p.m.1-800-701-0501
- NYC Aging ConnectAsk for HIICAP; in-person appointments. Also 212-AGING-NYC212-244-6469
- New York Medicaid ChoiceMedicaid plan enrollment and opt-out help. TTY 1-888-329-1541. Mon–Fri, 8:30 a.m.–8:00 p.m.; Sat, 10:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.1-800-505-5678
- NY Medicaid Choice long-term care lineMAP, MLTC, PACE1-888-401-6582
- NY ConnectsLong-term services and supports, any age1-800-342-9871
- NYC HRA Medicaid HelplineYour Medicaid case, renewals, address1-888-692-6116
- MedicareTTY 1-877-486-2048. 24 hours a day1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227)
Numbers checked against official sources on September 10, 2026. Hours and phone menus change; the official sites are aging.ny.gov, nyc.gov/aging, nymedicaidchoice.com, nyconnects.ny.gov, and nyc.gov/hra.
Default enrollment letter tip for Fordham
Fordham Road has more sidewalk insurance tables and storefront enrollment offices than almost any street in the Bronx. The default enrollment letter is not an invitation from those tables. It comes from your own Medicaid plan at least 60 days before your Medicare start date, and the only ways to opt out are to call or write that plan, or to have New York Medicaid Choice connect you to it. Signing something on the sidewalk is a different transaction.
Before the effective date, check the two things Fordham residents most often lose track of: whether the clinic you use at St. Barnabas or Montefiore is in the D-SNP’s Medicare network, and whether your Fordham Road pharmacy is in its Part D network. If either answer is no, call HIICAP that week.
Not sure which letter you have? Read the default enrollment letter decoder or the blog post what to do in the first 7 days.
Common mistakes in Fordham
- Treating a table outside the Fordham Road stores as the place to “answer” the letter. Enrolling with a salesperson is not the same as opting out, and it can leave you in a plan not aligned with your Medicaid plan.
- Assuming that because the St. Barnabas clinic takes your Medicaid plan, it takes the same company’s D-SNP. The Medicare list is a separate list and it changes every January.
- Letting the HRA renewal slide while you sort out the Medicare letter. In Fordham a lapsed Medicaid case is the most common reason a D-SNP enrollment falls apart.
Orientation: places people in Fordham mention
Orientation only. Listing a hospital or center here is not a recommendation and says nothing about which plans it accepts. Always check the plan’s own provider directory.
- St. Barnabas Hospital (SBH Health System) · Third Avenue, Belmont; a few blocks from Fordham Road
- Montefiore Medical Center, Moses Campus · East 210th Street, Norwood; north by the D train or bus
- Bronx Library Center (NYPL) · Kingsbridge Road; computers and quiet rooms for phone calls
Want your next steps in writing?
Answer five short questions about your coverage and your letter. We will email you a plain-language summary of what to ask and who to call from Fordham. Optional callback. This tool does not enroll you in any plan, does not decide eligibility, and is not from the government. Free HIICAP counseling is always available first.
Prefer to talk with a person right now? HIICAP is free at 1-800-701-0501.