MEDICARE MANUALS ON CD-ROM
(HCFA--Health Care Finance Administration)


What's on the disk:

Information on programs under the jurisdiction of the HCFA including:
	Numerous Medicare Manuals
	Program Memoranda
	Medicaid policies and proposed regulations (federal)
	Laws from U.S. Code Titles 11, 18, 19
	Sections of the Code of Federal Regulations Titles 42,45

Disks are issued monthly with new additions regularly.
To see a list of documents on the disk, at search screen:

1. Type ALT-T for Table of Contents. Press ENTER to view a document.
2. Press F2 for Search Menu, then choose DATABASE SELECTION. This displays databases on the disk and allows searcher to search specific ones if desired.

Search Options:

There are two options at the Main Menu screen:

1. New Pull Down Menus
2. Old Standard Menus

Searching is basically the same. Differences do arise when you wish to mark text and print. Also, menus look a little different. For example, to browse word list (to see how many times a word occurs) you choose F5. This option appears at the bottom of the new search screen, at the top of the old.

Searching Basics, either method:

1. Type keywords or phrases in on each line of the search box. Use quotes around phrases. Otherwise, words on the same line are combined using OR, resulting in a very broad search. Words on separate lines are combined using AND.

2. Or, browse Word Wheel (F5) and hit ENTER when word is highlighted.

3. Number Search--At lower part of search screen, you can enter a section number of a manual or regulation to search. USE WITH CAUTION. If too specific a number is entered, for example, with paragraph numbers, etc. results may be zero. As an example, when searching for 42CFR 400.200, entering 400.200 yielded a result (leave out 42CFR). If entering a number results in too many hits, try combining the number in the number search box with a keyword at the top of the search screen.

Printing or Saving:

1. Entire Document-- Use F7 on new menus, F6 on old menus, then follow instructions.

2. Portion of Text--
	a. Old Menus--ALT-M to mark text. Type C at beginning and end of text to mark. F6 to print marked text.

	b. New Menus--F9 for tools menu. Choose ALT-M for Mark (or just type Alt-M without bothering with the menu). Use L to mark blocks of text. F7 to print marked text.

Function Keys:

F1		Help

F2		Displays search menu:
		Database Selection
		Proximity	Searching--allows you to specify that search terms be within a set number of words away from each other
		Sideways Searching--allows you to search other documents for a highlighted word or phrase while in a document

F5		Word Index

F6		Print on old menus.

F7		Print on new menus.

F9		Tools on new menu. Provides access to Mark Text.

F10		Quit

ALT-M	Mark text for printing a portion of a document.

ALT-T	See a list of documents on the disk.


Prepared by Elizabeth Zuelke, Public Library of Cincinnati & Hamilton County, 3/95