America Online (AOL) has teamed with The National Council on the Aging (NCOA) to launch a new portal designed as a one-stop-shop for older Americans to identify any Federal or State benefits for which they may be eligible. BenefitsCheckUp.org debuted June 5.

The Wall Street Journal recently reported that five million older American do not receive all of the benefits they are entitled to because they do not know they are eligible, or do not know where to apply. BenefitsCheckUp.org is designed to be a clearinghouse to make all of that information available in one place.

After filling out a confidential personal profile (no identifying information is required), seniors can find information on a wide range of benefits at the site for which they qualify (based on the information provided in their profiles), including:

• Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
• Medicaid
• Meals on Wheels
• Food Stamps
• Property Tax Exemptions
• Transportation Assistance
• Utility Bill Reductions

Returned results include names, addresses and phone numbers of local agencies and descriptions of the specific programs the user may be eligible for.

Conceived by NCOA President & CEO James Firman, BenefitsCheckUp.org was developed through the support of several partners including New York Life, Lucent Technologies, Merck and the Archstone Foundation.