Gregory's Server@lrvick @BenAveling @Jennifer 1 in 3 seniors does not even own a smartphone.
I don't understand how this could be even economically feasible, let alone legal.
What's the company?
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13 comments
@PenguinToot @neilk @lrvick @BenAveling @Jennifer I'm assuming elderly people are more expensive customers, as a health provider. From a stricly financial point of view, a measure that allows you to discriminate them while calling it a technical limitation sounds quite tempting. (no idea whether it's legal or not anywhere, tho, but it's certainly very questionable ethically)  @PenguinToot @neilk @lrvick @BenAveling @Jennifer No medicine-for-profit company wants old people with their measly Medicare reimbursements and lots of chronic illnesses. Better to get the cases of tennis elbow paid for by employer plans. If they can be made to exit the rolls simply by requiring use of a mobile phone, that's cost savings that goes right to the CEO's Ivory Backscratcher fund. @RealGene Both probably are factors in this move. The only thing for certain is that medical care is not at all about care anymore.  @RealGene @neilk @lrvick @BenAveling @Jennifer Daughter works for her state health insurers, visits lonely elderly to be sure they’re getting medical care, phones physicians as necessary to arrange visits, etc. But she’s one of few people who do this, clearly more will be needed as the population ages. At least Medicare is functioning for her clients. @RealGene @neilk @PenguinToot @BenAveling @lrvick @Jennifer I’m sure that they consider dumping elderly and indigent patients a feature, and not a bug. @PenguinToot @neilk @lrvick @BenAveling @Jennifer The thing is.. your medical insurers are in it for the profit and nothing else. Over here there is a legal requirement to provide insurance to everybody, and thus to accomodate people who can't or won't use smart phones. They cannot refuse people or pre-existing conditions or for (for instance) a condition that makes using a smartphone impossible, like old age or beginning dementia. @neilk @lrvick @BenAveling @Jennifer older people are less healthy = more costly for healthcare providers, if this "excuse" goes through they'll start doing it on purpose.   @neilk @lrvick @BenAveling @Jennifer It might be intentional, to whittle down their patient base to people who are younger and less likely to be on medicare/medicaid.  @neilk @lrvick @BenAveling @Jennifer yep my neighbors boyfriend has one so he helps her but I also help her out. She had to take an ambulance a couple months ago and the only way to pay the bill is either by mail or online. The post office is still broken, it will never be fixed again, so she didn’t want to mail it. That and she needs to have her receipt for her Deduction of medical expenses from her rent and she wasn’t sure she would get a receipt back that way. |
@neilk @lrvick @BenAveling @Jennifer I’m old but was a software engineer for Apple products so live on my iPhone (like now). But parents & in-laws could never use any mobile phone, either to keep it charged or dial with the tiny keypad, much less use a smartphone. Medical providers have to accommodate such people, or tell the world they’re not going to care for elderly people 🙁