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My mom had medical alert. After three months, they sent her a letter saying that her monthly premium would be increasing and that she should just sign a form they sent out with her bank information on it and authorize them to make withdraws. I thought this was a very predatory attempt to pull on a 90 year old woman, so I cancelled their service. I would like to find a new one.

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I am a Social Worker and I use Phillips Lifeline. They will at times waive the activation fee. Im sure there are plenty of good companies out there but this is the only one I use. Not sure of your situation but you should only be paying about $1 per day, maybe a little over that. If your mom goes outside the house by herself, you will have to pay a la carte for more functions. If she does not leave the house, I would pay extra for the fall detection. I have Phillips LifeLine for my parents and I did set it up for them to withdraw monthly charges out of their checking bank account. It's much easier that way. This is a reputable company.
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anonymous840695 Dec 2018
Thanks so much I will look into this. One issue I do have with my mother is that you can go through a lot of leg work to inquire about and acquire things she needs, and then she will reject it because of something frivolous. Monthly bills she pays herself and I can understand her wanting to do things the old fashioned way, she's 90. But then I get excuses like, the bracelet is uncomfortable on my wrist, and I don't like sleeping with it or the necklace because the necklace is also uncomfortable while I'm sleeping.
She recently had a very minor stroke and her gait is sometimes unstable she lives alone but is visited daily by my sister. I am there 24/7 for about ten to fourteen days each month. But I still worry because she weighs about 100lbs. and is frail. It's her money that pays for her care, so I don't really have the right to say,"you're getting this whether you want it or not," but I fear that sometimes her judgment is not good, and this worries me. There have been times when she has gone into crises because of post-concussive syndrome she incurred last May, and if I hadn't been there I don't know what would have happened. She has one caregiver who is there two hrs. per week, and is extremely resistant to any additional services, partly because she is extremely hard of hearing and most people don't know how to talk to her so that understands them. This makes her feel very inadequate. She also is uncomfortable around non-family members in general. She pays for her living expenses out-of-pocket, and has become very frugal in her old age and so that is an issue as well.
I know this is a lot but if anyone has found themselves in a similar situation with a parent, any advise would be greatly appreciated
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I use a local company for my aunt that is contracted with the local EMT company. I also have my aunt’s payment withdrawn monthly. There are no contracts. Her company is not perfect but they are there regardless of how often she presses the button by mistake. I would start with personal referrals in your area. She also pays about $1 per day. Her plan was upgraded when we got the device that calls should she fall without her having to press the button. Hope this helps.
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If regular on-time monthly payments are an issue, some banks will do bill pay for you that you have to do monthly yourself on the computer.  I do that, but I also have POA.  Once I set it up, the bank has all needed info (company name and address) and I just choose it, type in the amount, and press PAY.
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We used philips lifeline too, I liked that it was monitored 24/7 and the monthly check ins were a good way to get accustomed to using the service, but it was a little pricey compared to other options. There was no problem stopping the auto pay and returning the devices when we cancelled the service either.
I've got to say though that your mom sounds a little like mine was when I realized that she really shouldn't be living alone any more - an nonagenarian who is a fall risk and is becoming frail.
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