Look for $250 at end of September IF . . .

If you hit the "donut hole" on your Aetna Medicare prescription costs in April, May or June, as I did, you should get your $250 check at the end of September under the health care reform law.

If you don't hit the "donut hole," when you have to pay 100% of your brand-name drugs, till July, August or September, then you won't get your $250 till the end of December.

In 2011 Medicare customers will pay 50% instead of 100% for brand-name drugs after they reach the donut hole. By 2020 that will drop to no more than 25%.

That's in the excellent Q. and A. about "Obamacare," as it is labeled by some, in the AARP Bulletin online. Click on the headline for answers to your questions. It runs for 16 pages of online information.

Other nuggets:

The "death panel" scare conjured up by opponents is debunked.

While the deductions for medical expenses jumps from 7.5% to 10% of your Adjusted Gross Income before you can count it, effectively relegating most of us to using the standard instead of the itemized deductions, that only affects those younger than 65. For those 65 and older, the change doesn't take effect till 2017.

More questions? Click on the headline and check the answers for yourself.