Free check-in calls for seniors in Florida
In Florida these programs are run county by county, mostly by the sheriff. Three we could confirm on the sheriffs' own pages are below. If she lives elsewhere, ask her county sheriff on the non-emergency line.
Read on . Programs change their hours, their rules and sometimes stop. Ring the number on the program's own page before you count on it.
Programs we could confirm
SafetyNet
Communications officers phone each person every morning between 6 and 8 am, seven days a week. If nobody answers, they try twice more, then a deputy is sent for a welfare check, and key holders are called if the door is locked. Free.
- Run by
- Walton County Sheriff's Office
- Covers
- Walton County
- Who can join
- Elderly and homebound residents of Walton County.
- How to sign up
- (850) 892-8111.
- Source
- waltonso.org, read on
Senior Watch Program
This one works the other way round: she calls Senior Watch every morning. If they do not hear from her, they call her, then a neighbor or relative, and if there is still no contact a deputy is sent.
- Run by
- Lake County Sheriff's Office
- Covers
- Lake County
- Who can join
- People who live alone or have medical problems and nobody to check on them daily.
- How to sign up
- 352-343-2101.
- Source
- lcso.org, read on
HCSO CARE LINE
Daily contact for people who live alone. The page itself says little more; the application has the details.
- Run by
- Hernando County Sheriff's Office
- Covers
- Hernando County
- Who can join
- People living alone who would like daily contact.
- How to sign up
- 352-754-6830, ext. 53660, or the application on the page.
- Source
- hernandosheriff.org, read on
If none of these covers her town
- Eldercare Locator, a free federal service: 1-800-677-1116, or eldercare.acl.gov. It connects you to the Area Agency on Aging for her county. Ask for "telephone reassurance" by name.
- 211 from a phone in her area. It lists local services, call programs included.
- The sheriff's office or police department for her town, on the non-emergency line. Some run a daily call for older residents and only mention it when asked.
What to ask before you sign her up
- Does it call every day, or only on weekdays? What about holidays?
- What happens on a missed call, and how long until somebody is told?
- Who is told: you, a neighbor, a deputy at the door?
- Is there a waiting list, an age rule or a county rule?
How Care is different from a free program
If one of these programs covers her and fits her day, start there. It costs nothing, and some of them send a volunteer or a deputy to the door, which no phone service can do.
Care is a paid, automated call, not a volunteer and not a public office. It rings at the time you set, in her time zone, on the days you choose, weekends included. Any phone works, a landline too.
When she does not answer, it rings again ten minutes later and sends a text to her phone, then once more at twenty-five minutes. Then the people on your list are told by text and email, one after another, until somebody confirms. Nobody is sent to her house: the people you listed decide what happens next.
It is not an emergency service, it is not a medical device and it cannot detect a fall. Every call says so, and tells her to hang up and dial 911 if she needs help now.
Questions
- Are daily check-in calls for seniors free in Florida?
- Many are. Most programs on this page say they are free or have no charge. A few do not state a cost, so ask when you call.
- Who runs telephone reassurance programs?
- Usually the Area Agency on Aging for the county, a sheriff's office or police department, a senior center, or a volunteer group.
- What happens if my parent does not answer a free check-in call?
- It depends on the program. Some call a named contact, some send a volunteer or a deputy. Each program's own page, or a call to its number, will tell you.
- Can we use a free program and a paid check-in call together?
- Yes. Some families keep a volunteer who calls for a chat once or twice a week and add a short automated call every morning.