"Are You OK?" programs and paid daily calls, compared
A lot of sheriff's offices and police departments ring older residents every day for free, under names like "Are You OK?", RUOK or Senior Roll Call. Paid services such as IamFine Daily Call and Care do a similar job wherever she lives. Here is how each one works, from their own pages.
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How the free programs work
Each one is run for one county or town, and the details differ. Three examples, as their own pages describe them:
- Senior Roll Call Lifeline, New Castle County Police, Delaware. Free automated calls to members' homes every day. If several attempts fail, a follow-up starts and an officer may be sent for a welfare check. Open to seniors and disabled residents of the county (newcastlede.gov).
- RUOK?, Cherokee County Sheriff's Office, Georgia. A free call every day at the time the subscriber picks, made by a member of staff. After a few unanswered tries a deputy is sent to the house. You must live in the county and have a telephone (sheriff.cherokeecountyga.gov).
- RUOK Program, Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, for Fountain Hills, Arizona. A free automated call at a set time each day. If nobody answers after several tries, deputies drive to the home. Limited to residents inside the town, with a waiver to sign (fountainhillsaz.gov).
What they have that no private service has is a person who can be sent to the door. The catch is the map. Each covers one county or one town, many are known mostly by word of mouth, and some have rules about age or disability. Programs we could confirm, state by state.
How paid daily calls work
IamFine Daily Call rings once or twice a day. She answers and presses 1, texts OK, or logs in. If she does not answer, it calls five more times over an hour and then emails or texts her contacts, who decide whether to check or call 911. It is $14.99 a month or $120 a year, for up to eight contacts (dailycall.iamfine.com).
Care rings at the time you set, in her time zone, and she answers in her own words. If she does not pick up, it rings again at ten and twenty-five minutes and sends a text to her phone, then tells the people on your list by text and email, one after another, until somebody confirms. If she says she fell or has chest pain, you are told at once. You can add up to three questions of your own. It is $29 a month for one person.
Side by side
| Sheriff or police program | IamFine Daily Call | Care | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free | $14.99 a month | $29 a month |
| Who can join | Residents of that county or town, sometimes with an age or disability rule | Works with any phone, its page says | Any phone, in any county |
| How she answers | Picks up, or presses a key, depending on the program | Presses 1, texts OK, or logs in | Answers out loud, in her own words |
| On no answer | A contact is called, or a deputy or officer is sent, depending on the program | Five more calls over an hour, then her contacts by email or text | Two more calls over twenty-five minutes, then your list by text and email, in order, until one confirms |
| Somebody sent to the door | Often | No | No |
| What you learn | Usually only that she answered | That she checked in | Her answers, written down |
Which to choose
If her county runs one of these programs every day and it fits her routine, sign her up. It is free, and a deputy at the door is worth a lot on a bad morning.
A paid call makes sense where there is no program, where the local one has a waiting list or only runs on weekdays, when the family is spread across states and wants to be the ones told, or when you want to hear what she said rather than only that she answered. Some families use both: the sheriff's call as the safety net, and a short call of their own to hear how she is.
None of these is a replacement for 911. Care says at the start of every call that it is not an emergency service, and it cannot detect a fall.
Questions
- What is the Are You OK program for seniors?
- A free daily phone call, usually run by a sheriff's office or police department, to older or disabled residents who live alone. If the call is not answered, a contact is called or an officer is sent, depending on the program.
- Is the R U OK program free?
- The programs we read about on official pages are free. Each one is run locally, so check the page or call the office for her county.
- Who can sign up for a sheriff's daily call program?
- Residents of the county or town that runs it. Some add an age limit or ask that the person lives alone, is homebound or has a disability.
- What if her county does not have one?
- Ask the Area Agency on Aging through the Eldercare Locator at 1-800-677-1116, or dial 211 in her area. A paid daily call is not limited to one county.