http://www.state.fl.us/doea/doea.html
Volume 8, Number 8 / August, 1998
PUBLISHED BY THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF ELDER AFFAIRS • E. BENTLEY LIPSCOMB, SECRETARY
Bulletin Board
Florida lost one of its strongest
advocates for elders in June when C.
Colburn Hardy died on June 8. He
was 88.
Hardy, a former New Jersey
newspaper publisher and public
relations executive, worked tirelessly
on behalf of elders in Palm Beach
County and around the state. He coauthored a book, A Guide to Services
for Seniors, with his daughter, former
Social Security Administration commissioner Dorcas Hardy Spagnolo —
due out this fall.
In 1996, Hardy won the
Distinguished Older Advocate Award
of the Southern Gerontological
Society in Atlanta.
***
About 26,000 Elder Update subscribers recently received a note from
us asking them if they wish to renew
their subscription. We sent the notes
to comply with postal regulations.
Overall, the renewal card campaign is going very well. However, a
small number of subscribers’ renewal
cards may have been mislabeled or
have gone astray in the mail. If your
subscription to Elder Update mysteriously ends in early September, and
you wish to keep receiving the publication, please clip the NEW SUBSCRIPTIONS ONLY! form on Page
2 of any issue, fill it out and mail it in.
***
The Department of Elder Affairs,
working with the Florida Association
of Senior Centers, will sponsor seminars entitled, “The Florida LawAdvanced Directives,” the week of
Sept. 13-19, at senior centers throughout the state. These seminars will
attempt to educate Floridians on a
wide range of subjects including
living wills, refusal of medical
treatment, advanced directives and
related issues while answering questions about current law and providing
a public forum about needed changes
in Florida law. For more information,
contact your local senior center.
***
In our May issue, we published a
story on the cover regarding a state
House committee approving a bill
Continued on page 6
HEAT WAVE!
Take steps to reduce risk during hot months
I
n the wake of several reported
heat-related deaths of Florida
elders, Gov. Lawton Chiles urged
older Floridians to protect their
health during the current heat wave.
“No Floridian is at greater risk
than older adults, especially those
with respiratory or other health
problems,” said Gov. Chiles. “It is
vital for elders and their loved ones
to take steps to reduce their risk.”
At least three deaths have been
reported by Area Agencies on
Aging, one in Broward County
and two in Dade. They were aged
85, 59 and 47.
In Volusia County, 75 older
people were hospitalized in late
June due to smoke inhalation and
elevated ozone levels — due to
fires burning in North Florida —
and heat prostration.
Some of Florida’s 11 Area
Agencies on Aging have begun to
distribute fans and bottled water
to some frail elders, especially in
North and Central Florida. All are
distributing information on heat
stress. To get more information,
“No Floridian is at greater risk than older adults,
especially those with respiratory or other
health problems.”
— Gov. Lawton Chiles.
older people can call the Elder
Helpline at 1-800/96-ELDER
during weekday business hours.
Elders are the primary victims
of heat waves. Gov. Chiles cited a
report by the U.S. Senate Special
Committee on Aging, stating that
“prolonged periods of very hot
weather — heat waves — claim
more lives nationally than any
other natural disaster, including
floods, tornadoes and hurricanes.”
Florida’s Secretary of Elder
Affairs, E. Bentley Lipscomb,
urged neighbors and community
members to check on frail elders
frequently while the heat wave
persists.
Lipscomb also urged elders to
take these steps to protect themselves: staying in air-conditioned
spaces; drinking plenty of water;
taking cool baths or showers to
reduce heat stress; using fans to
bring in cooler outside air, especially at night. Elders should seek
assistance if they suffer these
symptoms of heat stress: dizziness,
extreme weakness, nausea, dry skin
(failure to sweat) and an inability
to concentrate.
TECHNIQUES FOR
KEEPING COOL IN
THE HEAT
Facts about the heat
Heat waves are most dangerous
when there is no relief from heat,
when both day and night temperatures remain above 90 degrees and
when humidity is high.
Continued on page 17
Elder Affairs prepares for conference
on Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s
an effort to tackle the challenges of two of the
Iofnmost
critical diseases facing elders, the Department
Elder Affairs will present the Alzheimer’s and
Parkinson’s Disease Summit in October.
The two-day summit will be held on Oct. 19-20
in Sarasota at the Hyatt Regency, and will focus on
four main goals:
• Identify needs and barriers facing caregivers —
who are crucial in the struggle with these two
diseases — while looking for ways to improve
support for caregivers and help them to provide
care at home for as long as possible.
• Educate and inform conference participants
about the best practices, latest research findings,
public policy direction and resources.
• Through small group interaction, explore some
of the most difficult questions facing caregivers and
the entire aging network, such as rights vs. risk,
longer-term care insurance issues, use of medications
to prolong the disease process, etc.
• Create a sense of unity among participants and,
consequently, a sense of commitment to follow up.
About 250 people are expected to attend the
summit.
PAG E
2
ELDER UPDATE
A U G U S T 19 9 8
Life adds to my string of pearls
By Helen Tuck Fine
(Editor’s note: This month,
we begin trying out potential new
columnists to go along with some
of our regular columnists. This
month: Helen Tuck Fine.)
W
hen I was a teenager, an
enterprising jeweler had a
“build a necklace” offer. He
supplied a free gold chain on
which he would add pearls as
you bought them from him.
You did not have to buy the
pearls all at once, but could go
back time after time until you
filled the chain with a perfectly
matched string of pearls.
The tradition was to add a
pearl to a young girl’s necklace to
mark a noteworthy event; an all
“A” report card, a birthday, a
graduation, passing the test for a
driver’s license.
I liken all my life’s special
moments to that string of pearls.
Often these pearls, like happiness,
materialized not when I sought
them, but when I least expected
them.
There might be a phone call
from a faraway friend just when
I was feeling low. Or an invitation
to spend some time on a beach
when I felt the walls were closing
in on me.
My engagement and marriage
Your Comments Are Important to Us!
Elder Update recognizes corporate members of the Elder Floridians
Foundation, Inc. Such recognition does not constitute an endorsement by
the Department of Elder Affairs of the products or services offered by
corporate members.
POSTMASTER:
Send address changes to:
Editor, David Lee Simmons
Database Manager, Bonni Singer
ELDER UPDATE
Elder Update (USPS 403-710/ISSN
Department of Elder Affairs
1060-4545) is published monthly by
P.O. Box 10118
the Department of Elder Affairs.
Tallahassee, Florida 32302
4040 Esplanade Way
Periodicals postage paid at
Tallahassee, FL 32399-7000
Tallahassee, FL
✃ NEW SUBSCRIPTIONS ONLY!!
If you are not currently receiving Elder Update, you may do
so by completing the form below and sending it to Elder Update,
P.O. Box 10118, Tallahassee, FL 32302
Elder Update is distributed at no cost to elder Floridians.
Title (Mr./Mrs./Dr., etc.)
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Street Address or P.O. Box No.
______________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
City/State/Zip Code
County
A String of Pearls
Have I
A string of pearls have I
lustrous with memory’s glow
of babes with slumberous eyes
of moonlit nights
sun-filled days with skies of azure
and lilac’s purpled profusion
pearls rose, days of pleasure
pearls ebony, nights of pain
from a lowly oyster
what loveliness forms
as babes to manhood grow
and freedom to travel arises
a world to see
more pearls to treasure.
________________
Mission Statement
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Business/Organization
There are also pearls of
wisdom, painfully acquired over
the years; learning that children
have to live their own lives; learning to live in the here and now, or
to “what if?” and “I should have”;
learning that my pearls are not
necessarily someone else’s pearls,
that I may show them and share
them but can’t force someone else
to wear them.
My necklace is more in my
imagination and memory than on
a string or a chain. To run through
the fingers of my mind brings
great joy.
I even wrote a poem for my
string of pearls:
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
First Name _________________________________________________________________________________________ M. Initial
Last Name
became part of my necklace. The
births of my children added three
more pearls over a ten-year period.
One magnificent June morning, I stepped out on my back
porch early. The fragrance of lilacs
and honeysuckle in full bloom
scented the morning air and when
I looked heavenward, the sky was
an inverted azure dome above my
head.
That morning, 50 years ago,
is another pearl on my necklace.
Another is the day of the
Blessing of the Fleet. Our little
boat took its place in a parade of
larger boats. The weather was
perfect. The ocean, a blue mirror,
sparkled with a million reflected
suns as we moved past the towering Coast Guard Cutter to receive
our blessing.
There is a pearl for a Benny
Goodman concert where the band
played “A String of Pearls.” And
another for the play, “Fiddler on
the Roof.”
There are some black pearls
on my necklace, too; times when
the children were ill, the time our
son went to Vietnam, the time my
husband had a heart attack and
years later a stroke.
I’ve been told that black
pearls are rare and expensive and
therefore more valuable. To me,
their value lies in the lessons each
black pearl taught me; faith that
my son would return safely home
(he did), patience, compassion for
the ill.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
T
he mission of the Department of Elder Affairs is to maximize
opportunities for self-sufficiency and personal independence
of Florida’s elders and to plan, advocate and administer programs
and policies that assure accessible, responsive and comprehensive
services and long-term care.
ELDER UPDATE
A U G U S T 19 9 8
PAG E
3
The Customers Always Write
Dear Editor,
I am very disappointed in
the article on Page 17 of the May
Elder Update. This article is
merely a rehash of a dozen or
so rumors and unverified claims
made by professional, selfappointed “food experts,”
working to get contributions to
their phony “institutes” and
“federations.”
It is of particular concern
that you printed this article
under the insignia of the Florida
Silver-Haired Legislature,
making readers believe that the
Silver-Haired Legislature
believes in and approves of this
anti-government propaganda.
Your paper does a good job
of warning us of the various
kinds of telephone fraud. Now,
however, you have printed a
completely phony propaganda
piece designed to scare the
elderly with unconfirmed
rumors and downright lies
about radiation.
John, Naples
(Editor: The author raises
interesting points. The author
of the article, FSHL CEO Bobbe
Taffel, stands by the sources she
cited in the article, but also
concedes that the FSHL has not
passed legislation condemning
food irradiation but that she
merely was raising the issue. As
for the use of the FSHL logo, the
logo simply is used to identify
stories relating to the FSHL, and
the logo appearing over these
articles shouldn’t necessarily be
construed as a “stamp of
approval” from the group.
Dear Editor,
Since the recent death of
Frank Sinatra, reminiscences
about the late celebrity have
been rampant in the media to
which I’d like to add my own.
My husband, Ted and I, on
our first date (we had met three
days earlier at a lively party in
New York City’s Greenwich
Village) went to the Rustic Cabin
in Englewood Cliffs, N.J. where
at the time — 1938 — the roadhouse had a singing waiter, a
then-unknown Frank Sinatra.
The Rustic Cabin has long
since burned down and been
replaced by a gas station that
sports a bronze plaque stating:
“It all started right here.”
Many times during that next
year, Ted and I danced to
Sinatra’s rendition of a popular
ballad of the day, “South of the
Border Down Mexico Way...”
I was not at all impressed
by “Young Blue Eyes.” He was
very thin, almost scrawny. His
voice, though pleasant, evoked
no chills or thrills as far as I was
concerned.
Down through the years,
Frank was married to Nancy,
Ava, Mia and Barbara while Ted
and I celebrated our 57th wedding anniversary this past March.
In the summer of 1939,
orchestra leader Harry James
heard Sinatra on a radio program, trekked over to Jersey to
see The Voice in person, hired
him away from the roadhouse
and started him on his fabulous
career.
Our paths, though Frank
never noticed, never crossed
again.
Elizabeth, Bradenton
Dear Editor,
I am writing to alert you to
a very serious problem that will
affect all seniors who qualify for
Medicare.
Under current law, a voluntary private contract between a
physician and a Medicare-eligible patient can be negotiated for
Medicare-covered services, but
with the proviso that the physician is barred from billing Medicare for a period of two years.
This limitation is in place to
protect seniors from being
charged exorbitant fees by physicians. Presently, a physician and
a Medicare-eligible patient may
negotiate a private contract for
non-Medicare-covered services.
Prior to the Balanced Budget
Act (BBA) of 1997, doctors were
prohibited from negotiating any
private contract for Medicarecovered services. If a doctor did
not accept Medicare assignment
for these services, his fee was
limited to 115 percent of the
allowable Medicare payment for
this service.
In effect, the BBA was a liberalization of the prior law. The
1997 BBA provision which bars a
physician from billing Medicare
for two years is a protection that
Medicare seniors cannot afford
to lose.
In the 104th Congress, Sen.
Kyl introduced S. 1194, titled the
“Medicare Freedom to Contract
Act.” A companion bill, H.R.
2497 was introduced to the
House by Congressman Archer.
These bills would permit physicians to contract with Medicare
patients for services at a price
uncontrolled by Medicare
allowances, while maintaining
the ability of the physician to
treat other Medicare patients
under Medicare allowances.
This change to the current
law is being promoted on the
premise that Medicare seniors
are having difficulty finding doctors who will accept the Medicare
allowance. This is not a problem
in Florida, nor indeed the rest
of the country. The National
Council of Senior Citizens states
that more than 95 percent of
all doctors accept Medicare’s
current price schedule, and less
than one percent of seniors say
they have problems finding
doctors who accept Medicare
patients.
These bills are tantamount
to giving doctors carte blanche
to charge seniors much more
than they are currently paying.
Medicare beneficiaries who enter
into private contracts will be
required to pay 100 percent of
the doctor’s charges for
Medicare-covered services.
The law would prohibit both
the patient and the physician
from billing Medicare. Nevertheless, such plans would limit
their reimbursement to “reasonable and customary” amounts.
It is obvious that physicians
(particularly specialists) in a
given geographic area could
agree to refuse Medicare for
certain procedures. The senior
needing these services would be
forced to contract for the service
for a much higher fee. The senior
could not, by law, apply for
Medicare reimbursement.
Continued on page 8
Florida
Power
PICK-UP
PAG E
4
A U G U S T 19 9 8
ELDER UPDATE
Consumers: Be wary of advance-fee
loan and credit-card fraud
T
he scenario is all too common:
a consumer receives a call or
sees an advertisement for a preapproved loan or credit card and
calls to receive an application.
Yes, says the company, they
can offer you a loan regardless
of credit history, if you pay an
up-front “insurance,” “security”
or “processing” fee in advance.
Too often, those with bad credit —
who can least afford it — end up
losing their up-front fee and never
hear from the company again.
Frequently, these advance-fee
loan fraud companies advertise in
local newspapers and free shopper
guides and employ slick telemarketers to promote their scam. They
accept credit applications over the
phone and ask for advance processing fees that range anywhere from
$25 to hundreds of dollars. Once
the advance fee is paid, the company keeps the fee and fails to
process the loan application or to
issue a credit card.
Though most advance fee loans
StayFit, FeelYounger
BY RENEÉ ISABELLE, B.S.C.
Who ever said that we have to slow down when we get older? With
the proper exercise plan, you could help reverse the effects of the aging
process, stay healthier, and feel younger.“There is plenty of data that now
shows the benefits of activity and exercise when added to our daily living,”
state Exercise Physiologists Chuck Wolf and Paul Siudmak with the
Orlando Regional Wellness Center.
One of the leading reasons for elderly people to give up their activities
and independence is a loss of physical strength. With less strength it is
increasingly difficult to complete the activities of daily living, such as lifting
oneself up out of a chair, carrying groceries from the car or regaining
your balance after a stumble.
An effective exercise plan which includes strength training will help
to maintain muscle mass and strength. Don’t be scare off by the words
“exercise plan.” That doesn’t mean you have to run around the track. You
can benefit from basic strength exercises such as lifting small dumbbells,
doing leg lifts, or walking.
With adequate strength, age is no longer a barrier to continue the
activities you like, or maintain your independence. And the increased
muscle mass helps the body burn calories more efficiently, which in turn
reduces body fat, decreases the risk of adult-onset diabetes, and helps
control high blood pressure. Regular exercise can also lower cholesterol
levels and increase bone density to prevent osteoporosis-related fractures.
ORHS logo
Orlando Regional Healthcare System is a corporate member of the Elder Floridians
Foundation, which partially underwrites Elder Update.
are illegal under Florida Statute
687, it can be very difficult to
protect consumers because many
of the companies perpetuating this
fraud are based in Canada or other
countries. The Federal Trade
Commission’s 1995 Telemarketing
Sales Rule makes it illegal for any
telemarketer to guarantee loans or
credit based upon payment of any
money in advance.
Remember that legitimate
lenders never guarantee or say that
you are likely to get a loan or a
credit card before you apply —
especially if you have bad credit,
no credit, or a bankruptcy.
If you don’t have the credit
offer in hand — or confirmed in
writing — and a telemarketer asks
you to pay for a guaranteed loan,
hang up. It’s fraud and it’s against
the law.
If you know of any advertisement or company that offers an
advance fee guaranteed loan, or
if you would like any additional
information, contact your local
Better Business Bureau, the Federal
Trade Commission, or the Florida
Comptroller’s Consumer Hotline at
1-800/848-3792.
ELDER UPDATE
A U G U S T 19 9 8
PAG E
5
Program gives new LIIFE
to insurance consumers
Life Insurance Information for Everyone
purchase another policy or contract
with the same insurer by misrepresenting or failing to disclose a true
and accurate comparison of the
contracts.
Please take time to familiarize
yourself with these types of sales
practices prior to purchasing or
replacing a life insurance policy.
T
he Life Insurance Information
for Everyone (LIIFE) presentation, sponsored by the Florida
Department of Insurance, helps
familiarize consumers with life
insurance to reduce their chances
of being victimized.
In April 1995, a multi-state task
force was organized to review
industry practices concerning life
insurance sales. The task force
found that there were misleading
and improper sales practices and
companies efforts to stop these
practices were inadequate.
As a result of the information
gleaned from the task force, Florida
Insurance Commissioner Bill
Nelson has been leading the charge
nationwide to insure that consumers
are being educated with regard to
these practices so that they can
protect themselves. Hence, a new
educational program has been
developed to offer consumers all
the tools that are needed to make
good informed decisions when
purchasing life insurance or making
changes in current policies.
Why is it important to
have life insurance?
Life insurance is designed to
provide financial security for your
family if death occurs unexpectedly.
There are many types of life insurance such as: Term, Whole Life,
Variable Products, Annuities. Do
not allow yourself to be victimized.
Insurance buyers need to be aware
of potential deceptive sales practices. Some of the practices include:
Vanishing Premium - An
agent’s presentation leads you to
believe that a policy will earn
such high dividends or interest
that premium payments disappear.
This is not necessarily true.
Twisting - Occurs when an
agent causes a current policy to
lapse when purchasing another
policy with a different insurance
Tips when considering
replacing your current
life insurance policy.
Florida Insurance Commissioner
Bill Nelson
company, through misrepresenting
or failing to disclose a true accurate
comparison of the contracts.
Churning - Occurs when an
agent uses the cash value in an
existing life insurance policy to
1. How much will you have to pay
in premiums and how long will
you be required to pay them?
2. How will premiums be paid if
you stop making payments?
3. Must I give up or surrender an
existing policy or purchase a
new policy?
4. Has the agent explained the use of
dividends and investment returns?
5. Has the agent provided you
with preprinted sales materials
explaining the policy and
premium payments.
6. Did the agent say the interest rates
or dividends are guaranteed?
Reminders prior to
buying or replacing
life insurance:
1. When considering purchasing a
policy have your attorney, a
friend, a family member, an
accountant or a Florida
Department of Insurance review
the information with you.
2. Be sure the product or the
program benefits your desired
planning, and the policy meets
your long term objectives.
3. Read all brochures and forms
thoroughly before signing.
4. Be sure the product and
presentation is explained in
Continued on page 6
Directory
S
HINE (Serving the Health Insurance Needs of Elders) is a free insurance counseling program designed
for elders and their caregivers. Highly trained volunteers assist elders with their health insurance questions.
If you need assistance with Medicare, Medicaid, or health-related insurance, a SHINE volunteer counselor can
help. Call 800/963-5337 for the SHINE site nearest you.
SHINE has counselors in the following counties:
ALACHUA
BAY
BRADFORD
BREVARD
BROWARD
CALHOUN
CHARLOTTE
CITRUS
COLLIER
DADE
DESOTO
DUVAL
ESCAMBIA
FRANKLIN
FLAGLER
GADSDEN
GILCHRIST
GULF
HARDEE
HERNANDO
HIGHLANDS
HILLSBOROUGH
HOLMES
INDIAN RIVER
JACKSON
LAFAYETTE
LAKE
LEE
LEON
LIBERTY
MANATEE
MARION
MARTIN
MONROE
NASSAU
OKALOOSA
ORANGE
OSCEOLA
PALM BEACH
PASCO
PINELLAS
POLK
PUTNAM
SANTA ROSA
SARASOTA
SEMINOLE
ST. JOHNS
ST. LUCIE
SUWANNEE
SUMTER
VOLUSIA
WAKULLA
WALTON
WASHINGTON
PAG E
6
Study:
Elderly
cancer
patients
fail to
receive pain
treatment
With more and
more older people
with cancer living out
the final months of their
lives in nursing homes, a
study released in June disclosed some shocking news:
They’re not getting treated
for pain.
Many are being severely undertreated for pain, and more than a
fourth of those who complain about
pain — particularly African
Americans and the very oldest —
Bulletin Board
continued from page 1
requiring more frequent testing for
drivers age 75 and over.
The bill was not passed during the
session, which hasn’t kept readers from
sending in a flood of letters critical of
the proposal.
So, for the record, the bill is dead.
For now.
***
A U G U S T 19 9 8
aren’t even getting aspirin.
The study, the largest
of its kind, involved
13,625 cancer patients
in five states, and
concluded that
patients older than
85 were roughly
half as likely to
get treated for
pain as those
aged between
65 and 74. Blacks,
meanwhile, were half as
likely as whites to receive
pain medication.
“At some point, nursing home
staff and in-house doctors may
give up on patients who they know
are going to die,” Dr. Giovanni
Gambassi, a main author of the
We’d like to take this opportunity to
thank our readers who not only helped
us rate our columnists who appear on
Page 2 of each issue, but also to those
who applied for our open columnist
position. We will try out a few over the
next couple issues, and solicit your
feedback. This month features Helen
Tuck Fine. Please send any feedback to:
Elder Update Columnists
P.O. Box 10118
Tallahassee, FL 32302
How to give a lasting tribute
A MEMORIAL GIFT TO THE ELDER FLORIDIANS FOUNDATION, INC.
IS A LOVING AND LASTING TRIBUTE. REMEMBERING A DECEASED
RELATIVE OR FRIEND HELPS TO SERVE THE LIVING THROUGH THE
PUBLICATION OF ELDER UPDATE.
ELDER UPDATE
study in a June issue of the Journal
of the American Medical Association, told The New York Times.
“There is no acceptable excuse for
not treating pain appropriately in
terminally ill patients.”
American Nursing Home Association spokesman Tom Burke said
that while the study raised “legitimate issues that bear close scrutiny,”
he complained that nursing homes
were being singled out for criticism.
A couple of theories are circulating as to the reason behind the lack
of pain treatment for blacks and the
“old-old,” said Dr. Kathleen Foley,
chief of the pain and palliative care
service at Memorial Sloan-Kettering
Cancer Center in New York City.
One is prejudice. Another, Foley said,
may be that many patients “are used
to being in pain and suffering and
therefore don’t complain about it.”
Public may not
understand Medicare
options, government
officials fear
The nation’s 38 million Medicare beneficiaries may be about to
enjoy a wide range of options
thanks to last year’s Congressional
legislation, but they may not understand them.
That’s a major concern for government officials as information
about new health insurance options
starts to inundate elders. Consumer
advocates, members of Congress
and Medicare officials all fear that
these options just may be too much
to digest.
What some people don’t realize
is that many don’t even understand
the old Medicare system, according
to Michael Hash, deputy administrator of the Federal Health Care
Financing Administration, which
oversees Medicare.
In order to combat this lack of
information, the government plans
an extensive education and publicity
campaign and will soon send a new
Medicare guide to every Medicare
beneficiary’s home.
The only problem is, focus groups
that were shown the materials in the
guide found the information too
confusing. Even the most educated
had trouble, Hash said.
One official working for Senate
Majority Leader Trent Lott, R-Miss.,
predicted a flood of calls from
baffled constituents.
John Rother, legislation and
public policy director for the American Association of Retired Persons,
said beneficiaries will be confused
because of the complexity of the
choices and their lack of experience
with managed care.
“It’s not what they had when
they were working,” Rother told The
New York Times.
A recent study released by AARP
showed that a third of elders don’t
understand the difference between
health care from an HMO and
standard Medicare, even though
half of them were enrolled in
HMOs themselves.
(Editor’s note: In order to
understand the complex issues
surrounding Medicare, continue
reading Elder Update and consult
with the SHINE program by
calling the Elder Helpline at
1-800/96-ELDER.)
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS OF MEMORIALS AND OTHER REMEMBRANCES
ARE ALWAYS MAILED TO THE FAMILY AND NO REFERENCE IS MADE TO
THE AMOUNT OF THE GIFT. THE NAME OF THE INDIVIDUAL BEING
HONORED IS PUBLISHED IN ELDER UPDATE.
TO ACKNOWLEDGE YOUR GIFT TO THE FAMILY,
PLEASE SEND THE APPROPRIATE NAME AND ADDRESS.
MEMORIAL GIFTS MAY BE MADE BY SENDING YOUR CHECK TO
ELDER FLORIDIANS FOUNDATION, INC.,
P.O. BOX 10118 • TALLAHASSEE FL 32302-2118.
Elder Floridians Foundation, Inc.
Memorial Gift in honor of…
Robert F. Robuck
Tallahassee
Jerome Selik
Bay Harbor Island
Program gives new LIIFE
to insurance consumers continued from page 5
understandable terminology.
5. When replacing a policy, the
agent should ask you to sign a
replacement form advising the
current insurance company
the existing policy is being
terminated.
6. Continue to educate yourself
and become an informed buyer.
The Department of Insurance
has developed a new consumer outreach program designed to educate
consumers so that they will not
become victimized by unscrupulous
insurance agents. This presentation
takes about 18-23 minutes. It
focuses on the issues surrounding
life insurance policies that caused
so many people to lose their life
savings.
Commissioner Nelson is
adamant about protecting the
citizens of Florida and feels
education is the best way to do
that. If you have any concerns
regarding life insurance, call the
Department of Insurance toll-free
at 1-800/342-2762. Please call
813/588-4753 to schedule the
LIIFE presentation.
ELDER UPDATE
A U G U S T 19 9 8
PAG E
7
Guide dogs provide help — at a cost
— for Alzheimer’s caregivers
By D’vorah Mitchell /Elder Update correspondent
R
udy could not come at a more
needed moment. Sue Wardock’s
mother had lost her lifelong companion and Sue lost her father —
and faced losing her mother.
The day after Sue Wardock’s
father died, Rudy, an Alzheimer’s
guide dog, stepped into the family’s life. Sue had been planning
for Rudy’s arrival for months in
hopes that the dog would help her
care for her mother, who suffers
from Alzheimer’s disease.
Sue took Rudy to her father’s
funeral, and in the ride away from
the service, she noticed her mother
in the backseat talking to Rudy
and stroking his fur. The next thing
Sue knew, her mother’s arms were
around Rudy and the two were
asleep in the backseat. Rudy had
helped Sue’s mother work through
her sorrow.
“He replaces an anxious moment
with smiles,” Sue Wardock said.
Since then Rudy has been
Sue’s mother’s friend and protector. Rudy is one of three Alzheimer
guide dogs in the world trained by
Okada, a non-profit organization.
While most dogs come from animal shelters, Rudy, a golden
retriever, was donated to Okada
by a family that had been touched
by Alzheimer’s.
Training dogs to become
Alzheimer’s guides is a new concept, and it is difficult to train a
dog for this task. According to
Pat Putnam, executive director at
Okada, one dog is selected from
the 40-50 dogs tested to be an
Alzheimer’s guide dog, and the
subsequent training and placing the
dog with a caregiver takes a year.
Training involves sessions
where the caregiver learns how the
dog communicates.
“It takes the right dog, the
right caregiver and right patient,”
Putnam said.
Rudy has been trained to
control wandering, a common
occurrence and major concern
“He gives some dignity back to my mother.
I don’t have to watch her all of the time.”
— Sue Wardock, on how her guide dog, Rudy,
helps her mother.
with Alzheimer’s suffers. Without
any verbal command, Rudy knows
when Sue’s mother is doing something she shouldn’t do — like
turning on a stove, or going
somewhere she shouldn’t go —
like going out of the house. Rudy
finds Sue, alerts her, and leads her
to her mother. Rudy will find Sue
and wag his tail, bark, jump on the
bed, or do whatever he has to do to
get Sue’s attention. Rudy’s training
is so specific that he knows if
Sue’s mother moves in bed it’s
OK, but if she gets up, it’s time to
alert Sue. In the event a secondary
caregiver is watching Sue’s mother,
Rudy has been trained to alert this
person as well.
Rudy provides respite for
Sue, who would normally have to
have her mother under constant
supervision. He also gives Sue’s
mother some freedom.
“He gives some dignity back
to my mother,” Wardock said. “I
don’t have to watch her all of the
time.”
Dignity is not the only benefit
Rudy provides Sue’s mother, who
is in the middle stages of
Alzheimer’s. Rudy helps keep Sue
connected to reality and helps her
stay active.
“This woman, who was a size
18, is now a size 14,” said Wardock.
“She now walks a mile a day.”
Rudy goes into public places
with Sue and her mother. They are
certified to have legal access to
public places. Rudy often becomes
a topic of conversation and acts as
a catalyst for Sue’s mother to interact with people.
Sue believes that Rudy fills a
void in her mother’s life left by
the death of her father.
“Where she would be nurturing
my father, she nurtures Rudy,”
Wardock said.
The guide dogs don’t come
cheap. The usual price of an
Alzheimer’s guide dog is $8,000,
not including other costs such as
transportation and hotel accommodations. However, Okada does try
to cut costs when funding is available, and is planning on relocating
to Florida from Wisconsin to be
closer to its clientele and to raise
money for its cause. “It is frustrating to us to find someone who
needs a dog and can’t pay for it,”
Putnam said.
With funding, the expense
could still range from $250-$8,000.
In comparison, a guide dog for
the blind can cost from $25,000$35,000. However, the state picks
up the tab for the expenses of
those dogs.
In Sue’s case, money was
available to lessen Rudy’s expense.
The $8,000 fee was covered, but
Sue still had to spend about $2,000
for outside expenses. She thinks
Rudy is worth every penny, and
said you have to think about how
you are repaid: Her mother stays
active and Sue has some respite in
her ongoing role as a caregiver.
For more information, call
Okada at 414/275-5226.
Happy Birthday from the
White House!
I
nterested in requesting a personal birthday greeting from the
White House for an elderly friend or family member? The only
criteria is that the individual be at least 80 years old. To request a card,
write at least one month in advance of the anniversary date to:
Greetings Correspondence
White House
Washington D.C. 20500
Requests can also be made by calling the White House’s
comment line at 202/456-1111
PAG E
8
A U G U S T 19 9 8
ELDER UPDATE
Experience Corps provides mentoring, experience
o Clarence Reed, it’s killing
two birds with one stone. To
Tat-risk
youth and frail elders, it’s
a chance to give and receive
needed help, and learn a little
something in the process.
“It” is the Experience Corps,
a program funded by the Department of Elder Affairs that forms
volunteer teams by combining
active retirees and young people
to help older shut-ins.
“Not only are the at-risk
youths able to perform a service
for the senior community, but
they’re being mentored as well,”
said Reed, the Experience Corps
coordinator in Tallahassee working with the local Elder Care
Services. “They’re getting the
benefit of the senior volunteers’
experience and wisdom.”
One dream team features
Fennell Huggins, her friend,
Julia Twitty and five of Huggins’
grandchildren — including 18year-old Willie Davis. Huggins,
and Twitty had worked tirelessly
with a group called the Southside
Community Senior Citizens
Club, providing similar services
but without any funding. In the
Experience Corps, and her relatives, Huggins found some allies.
Not that Willie Davis was
all that excited at first. He had
gotten into a fight in school and
Presbyterian
Retirement
Communities
PICK-UP
Presbyterian Retirement Communities
is a corporate member of the Elder
Floridians Foundation, which partially
underwrites Elder Update
was serving community hours,
and wasn’t too thrilled about the
work.
His first job included helping
a 68-year-old stroke victim move
to a new apartment. No sooner
had the move been completed
but, just as the team left, the
woman injured her back in a fall.
While she was recuperating,
Davis had to feed her dog,
Checkers, whose diet included
chicken.
“I have to boil it and cut it
up for him,” Davis, himself a
dog owner, told the Tallahassee
Democrat. “I think she should
feed him dog food.
“I can discipline my dog,”
Davis said. “You can’t discipline
Checkers. He’ll sit down, but he
won’t come when you call him.
He has too much energy. ... We
gave him a bath yesterday. He
got the whole floor wet, running
around and shaking.”
Along the way, Davis
begrudgingly got a little something out of the experience.
“I think he enjoyed it,” said
Huggins, 55. “He acted sometimes like he didn’t, but you
could tell he did.”
Elder Affairs originally
funded the program at $28,000
but will spread the funding
around more to try different
approaches in other communities.
In Volusia County for instance, a
program will help provide home
repair and chore services through
a mission or church group. In
Pensacola, groups of children
will provide music therapy to
people with Alzheimer’s disease
or other forms of dementia.
Meanwhile, the Tallahassee
program hopes to expand to
Wakulla and Taylor Counties.
Huggins sees a real benefit in
providing tangible interaction
for elders.
“A lot of times, we just go
in and sit down and talk with the
elderly,” she said. “A lot of
elderly people don’t have family
members who can come in and
spend time with them.”
Experience
Corps volunteers Julia
Twitty (left),
Clarence Davis
and Fennell
Huggins have
helped take
care of
Checkers in
the owner’s
absence.
The Customers Always Write
continued from page 3
All legitimate senior organizations, including the AARP and
the National Council of Senior
Citizens, are against this bill. It is
being supported by the American
Medical Association, which
stands to gain the most from this
bill; Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW); and the
Richard Viguerie-created rightwing group, United Seniors
Association, which has been
reprimanded by Sen. Roth for
its despicable tactics.
A small number of Medicare
eligibles may be having difficulty
in finding a physician, but this is
not a problem which affects the
vast majority of seniors. Any
change to existing legislation
should not penalize the majority,
in order to help a few seniors
whose physicians will not accept
Medicare reimbursement.
A major reason for my
concern is that the United
Seniors Association and CAGW
have made mass mailings to sen-
iors which contain a great deal of
false information which implies
that, under present law, most
Medicare patients cannot obtain
the medical services they need
because they cannot contract
with their physician for
Medicare-covered services.
That is only true if the physician refuses to accept Medicare
payment for covered services.
Thus the “Freedom to
Contract” is a freedom for the
physician to escape Medicare
payment limitations and charge
as much as the traffic will bear.
These two bills should not
become law!
Donald, Ormond Beach
(Editor: We ran a “pointcounterpoint” on this very issue
in the May issue, but this is the
first comprehensive letter we’ve
received not from a particular
organization. Any private citizen
who would like to provide an
opposing view is encouraged to
write in.)
ELDER UPDATE
A U G U S T 19 9 8
A:
Q:
How do I know whether
to take a calcium supplement with vitamin D in it?
If you are outside a few
A:
times a week with skin
exposed to the sun, you may produce enough vitamin D on your
own. Since many people are not
consistently out that much, especially during the winter, they may
need dietary sources of vitamin
D, which is vital for the use of
calcium to keep bones healthy.
If you are taking a calcium
supplement because you don’t
consume dairy products, choose
one that supplies vitamin D.
(About 200 IU is about all you
need.) However, if you drink two
eight-ounce glasses of milk most
days and use a supplement to
get even more calcium, you are
getting enough vitamin D in the
9
A:
Q:
I’ve seen body weight
recommendations
described with “BMI” lately. Is it
the same as percent body fat?
No. BMI stands for
Body Mass Index, which
is a number that quantifies an
individual’s weight in relation
to their height. The figure is a
more accurate reflection of the
healthfulness of an individual’s
body size than weight alone.
Experts now say that maintaining a BMI of 25 or less
(which corresponds to different
weights depending on height)
may help prevent many chronic
diseases, such as diabetes, heart
disease, high blood pressure, and
possibly some forms of cancer.
BMI numbers are used as a
criteria for prescribing the new
weight-control drugs, which are
approved only for people whose
weight poses a significant health
risk, and not by those who want
to lose a few pounds for cosmetic
reasons. Experts suggest that
while people with a BMI over
25 may not be able to reach the
recommended level, maintaining
a loss of two BMI units (usually
about 10 to 16 pounds), is often
enough to control weight-related
medical problems and help to
prevent new ones.
PAG E
by Karen Collins, M.S., R.D.
mild and do not need it in your
supplement.
Because more vitamin D is
not necessarily better, it is more
important not to over-supplement
yourself.
Now that I’ve given up
Q:
ordering French fries at
fast food restaurants, I get hungry
too soon after eating. What low-fat
foods can I order to satisfy my
hunger longer?
A:
For less active people
with low calorie needs, a
low-fat sandwich may be enough
for a satisfying meal, but many
people require something more.
Baked potatoes with low-fat
toppings are a good choice.
Other restaurants may offer
a fruit cup or salad (make sure
to get a reduced-calorie dressing
or limit dressing amounts very
carefully). Fat-free muffins,
bagels or rolls, or a broth- or
tomato-based soup are great, too.
Fast food meals tend to be
light on fruits and vegetables, but
finding a way to include a fruit
or vegetable is the best solution
for creating a satisfying meal that
meets the healthy guidelines by
groups such as the American
Institute for Cancer Research.
avocados fit into a
Q: Can
low-fat diet?
Avocados are one of the
A:
few fruits and vegetables
that contain significant amounts
of fat. Unlimited amounts of avocados, along with other high-fat
foods, can increase total dietary
fat to a level higher than is
recommended by organizations
like the American Institute for
Cancer Research.
Half an average avocado
contains about 15 grams of fat,
almost as much as four pats of
butter, although only a small
amount of this fat is cholesterolraising saturated fat. Avocados
are a great source of vitamin C,
folic acid (a B-vitamin), potassium
and fiber.
Any high-fat food can be
included in a healthy low-fat diet
in small portions on an occasional
basis. If you want to eat avocados
more often, make sure that other
food choices balance out this
amount of fat. For example, when
using avocado in a salad you
might choose fat-free dressing
and limit any cheese to a small
portion of a low-fat variety.
I don’t usually cook with
Q:
herbs, but I heard they can
help you use fewer high-fat ingredients as flavorings. Are there any
general “rules” for using herbs?
When preparing hot
foods, add most herbs
(other than bay leaves and rosemary) during the last 15 minutes
of cooking, since they tend to
lose their essential flavoring oils
with longer heating. Cold foods
such as dips and dressings turn
out best when herbs’ flavors
have a chance to sit and blend
with other ingredients over an
hour or two.
As a starting point, allow a
quarter-teaspoon of dried or a
teaspoon of fresh herbs per
serving. Stronger and weaker
herbs, as well as individual taste
preferences, will require some
variation. Dried herbs keep
their flavor for six to 12 months
if they are kept away from light
and heat.
Plan to replace them after
that, or keep the ones you don’t
use often in the freezer so they
will last longer. Don’t expect
perfection right away. Just have
fun experimenting with this
wonderful source of flavor!
“Nutrition-Wise” is provided
as a public service by the
American Institute for Cancer
Research (AICR). Questions for
this column may be sent to
“Nutrition-Wise,” 1759 R Street,
N.W., Washington, D.C. 20009.
Ms. Collins does not respond to
questions personally. AICR also
operates a toll-free hotline that
offers advice about nutrition
and health. The number is
800/843-8114; it operates
weekdays from 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
Eastern time.
A
re you worried that an
elder relative or friend
may be the victim of abuse?
You can report known or
suspected cases of abuse by
calling the State of Florida’s
hotline at 1/800/96 -ABUSE
(962-2873)
PAG E
10
A U G U S T 19 9 8
ELDER UPDATE
Older worker regains her self-esteem
By Bettye Strickland /Elder Update correspondent
no longer feel old, and I
“I
may have gained my
self-esteem back,” said Carlin
Zinn in her graduation speech. Ms.
Zinn, an older worker, recently
graduated as a Certified Nursing
Assistant in Lakeland.
Zinn’s training was made
possible by the Department of
Elder Affairs’ Job Training
Partnership Act program and the
Senior Community Service
Employment Program.
After a 25-year career as an
office worker, Zinn describes how
she was forced to retire at age 62.
“Boy, did I feel old!” she
recalled.
When she had to return to
work, she was apprehensive
about going back to school and
afraid that she would not be able
to retain what had been taught.
“After all,” she said, “I had
been out of school for 40 years.
I am outgoing and felt that I
would probably be considered
the class dummy.”
Eventually, she realized that
“I feel that the training
I received will help me
better serve the ill people
in our community and
any situations that I might
face in my family.”
— Carlin Zinn, Certified
Nursing Assistant.
she could learn and class became
easier after that.
“I found that all of my classmates were very upbeat, happy
people,” she said. “Two of my
classmates, Margaret and Julie,
kept us laughing all of the time,
which helped ease the stress.
“I learned that I could retain
more than I thought I would. In
fact, I was surprised that at my
age I was able to absorb so much.”
Zinn recalled a class on cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)
that was particularly enlightening,
where she was able to ask questions of her instructor that she’d
never been able to ask her doctor.
Zinn also joked in her speech
how her instructor had taken some
of the romance out of her marriage.
Her husband, Jack, used to meet her
at the door with a kiss, but now he
welcomes her by holding out his arm
to have his blood pressure taken!
Practicing taking vital signs,
you see, was drilled into her by a
thorough instructor.
“In this class, I have learned
how to care for Alzheimer’s
patients and those with AIDS,
and I have learned to be more
comfortable around ill people,”
Zinn said. “I feel that the training
I received will help me better
serve the ill people in our
community and any situations
that I might face in my family.”
And, of course, her self-esteem
is back.
“I no longer feel ‘old’ like I
had,” she said. “I would highly
recommend this class. It was very
tiring but I looked forward to
getting up in the morning and
going to class.”
For more information about
training programs in your area,
please see the listing on the following page. Or, call 1-800/96-ELDER,
or Elder Affairs at 850/414-2018
for the Employment Programs
Unit in your area.
Medicare suffering from waste, fraud, abuse
W
hen E. Bentley Lipscomb
was invited to speak at the
Osceola County Council on
Aging’s Kickoff of Operation
Restore Trust, he brought some
sobering news to what for many
was a festive occasion.
Amidst lively Spanish music
and a Spanish singer to entertain
146 elders, a supportive staff and
panelists, Lipscomb called on
elders to join the fight against
fraud and abuse in Medicare.
He noted that the federal
PRINTED ON
RECYCLED PAPER.
PLEASE RECYCLE
government estimates that Medicare could be broke sometime
within the next decade of the
new millennium, and that every
dollar counts.
“A new government audit
released just last week said that
about $20.5 billion was spent in
overpayments, unnecessary payments or in other forms of waste,
fraud and abuse,” Lipscomb told
the group. “To put that into perspective, the $20 billion would
pay for every Social Security
check received by a Floridian in
one year — without enough left
over to send every Floridian age
65 and over a check for $2,000.”
Social Security and Operation
Restore Trust officials also attended
the kickoff, providing helpful information and answering questions
from the audience.
Department of Elder Affairs secretary E. Bentley Lipscomb presents a Merit
Award to Beverly Hougland, executive director, Osceola County Council on
Aging for the agency’s tornado relief efforts last February. From left: Secretary
Lipscomb, Judy Thames, Richard Tucker, Ph.D., Senior Resource Alliance
president, and Beverly Hougland.
ELDER UPDATE
A U G U S T 19 9 8
PAG E
11
Groups join forces to end marketing practices
By Mary Smith Judd /Special to Elder Update
lleging what may be the most
extensive harm to date resulting
A
from the unlicensed practice of law
in the state, The Florida Bar,
Attorney General Bob Butterworth
and the American Association of
Retired Persons
have joined
forces to stop
a Texas-based
business from
selling estate
planning
documents to
Florida’s senior
citizens.
Attorney General
The Bar’s
Bob Butterworth June 10 petition
seeks a permanent injunction from the Supreme
Court preventing Remington Estate
Services, Inc., which prepares
living trust documents, and Senior
Estate Services, which sells and
executes the trusts, from engaging
in unlicensed practice of law (or
UPL). Also named in the petition
are Donald T. Smith, Thomas E.
Smith, Charles Huechtker and
Jason Huechtker, who hold a variety
of top positions in the companies’
Texas and Florida operations.
The Attorney General’s petition,
filed the same day in the 17th
Circuit, seeks injunctive relief,
damages, civil penalties and other
statutory relief.
“The Attorney General and
AARP bring this lawsuit to protect
the civil rights of Florida’s elderly
residents by seeking a remedy for a
widespread pattern of exploitation
being perpetuated by defendants,”
the Attorney general’s petition said.
“Defendants have implemented a
scheme, targeted exclusively at
Florida’s elderly residents, using
unfair, fraudulent and deceptive
practices and scare tactics, to convince Florida’s elderly residents to
purchase living trusts and related
estate planning documents offered ...
regardless of whether such documents are appropriate for the
targeted elderly persons.”
At least 75 potential victims
contacted the Attorney General’s
office within 24 hours after the
first stories appeared in newspapers
across the state and aired on
televised newscasts, according to
Assistant Attorney General Paul
Hancock.
The calls have come from all
over the central to southern region
of the state, Hancock said. “We’ve
been very pleased with our working
relationship with The Florida Bar
and AARP,” Hancock said. “This is
very invidious discrimination, and it
is important that the state act.”
Fast Track
The Bar began receiving
complaints about the operation in
December, Bar Tampa Branch UPL
Counsel Loretta O’Keeffe said.
“We put this case on the fast track
based on the large number of
victims that we believe exist and
the extensive harm that has been
caused,” O’Keeffe said.
The complaints accuse the
defendants of targeting older Floridians in Sarasota, Lee, Manatee,
Palm Beach, Hillsborough, Osceola
and Broward counties through direct
mail cards, indicating they will
receive information about living
trusts if they return the card. Instead,
the Bar petition says, telemarketers
based in Houston telephone people
who return the cards to set up
appointments in their homes with
nonlawyer sales people or “trust
representatives” for the company.
Once in the senior citizen’s
home, the petitions claim the “trust
representatives” would attempt to
sell living trust documents prepared
by Remington at a cost of between
$1,895 and $2,995.
“Salespersons employed by
respondent Senior Estate are
advised during training to answer
questions and give whatever advice
is necessary to make a sale,” the
Bar’s petition said. “In the course
of the presentation, the salesperson
gives legal advice and opinions.
The salesperson also makes misrepresentations of law and fact as
necessary to convince the senior
citizen to purchase the trust.”
If the salesperson is unable to
answer the customer’s questions,
salespeople were instructed to call
Thomas Smith, Remington vice
president and general manager.
If the customer appears interested in purchasing the trust, salespeople also were trained to complete
the sale before leaving the home.
“Seniors are not given an opportunity to reflect on the purchase of the
trust or time to consult with family,
legal counsel or financial advisors,”
the complaint alleges. “Respondents
and their sales representatives use
high-pressure sales tactics to convince senior citizens that they need
living trusts and annuities to protect
their estates from probate and lawsuits by exploiting their fears and
taking advantage of their ignorance
or misunderstanding of the law and
the probate process.”
“The living trusts, annuities and
related documents prepared and sold
by respondents are not appropriate
for all purchasers,” the petition
alleges. “In many cases, a living
trust is unnecessary or ill-advised.”
After the trusts and other documents were assembled and drafted,
they were sent to Hillsborough
County lawyer David McCallister
for review.
“Mr. McCallister, or a representative of his office, may telephone
an elderly person who has purchased
a living trust for a brief conversation
that primarily confirms the names
of the intended beneficiaries,” the
Attorney general petition said.
McCallister also executed a form
letter, the petition said, which stated
his opinion that “the documents
conform with current law and
‘meet your needs as they have been
communicated to my office.’”
The complaint also asserts the
company has prepared and disseminated brochures regarding living
trusts that contain “false and misleading statements regarding trusts
and probate.” For example, according to the Attorney general’s complaint, the direct mail cards state that
an AARP report “found the probate
process to be outdated and costly.”
The card offers to send the elderly
person a copy of “What Lawyers
Don’t Want You to Know,” contain-
ing information on how to avoid
probate through a living trust.
The Bar petition also accuses
Senior Estate Services and Remington Estate Services of using “similar
unlawful tactics” to convince older
people to liquidate their assets and
purchase insurance products the
defendants offer.
Lawyer Assistance
Mary Ellen Bateman, UPL counsel, has contacted the Real Property,
Probate and Trust Law Section and
the Elder Law Section requesting
legal assistance for the victims.
But Clearwater lawyer Charles
Robinson, immediate past chair of
the Elder Law Section, said parameters ought to be defined “before we
leap into this fray.” Robinson said
the situation differs from a case last
year in which many probate and
elder law lawyers drafted trusts pro
bono for elders who had paid
American Senior Citizens Alliance
to provide the trusts, but often never
received them.
In this case, Robinson said
lawyers will have to review the documents and discuss with victims
everything from their asset values to
the trustworthiness of their children.
“I don’t think that you have a situation you can attack without knowing
the scope,” he said. “This should not
be an opportunity, for instance, for
lawyers to pick up fees. At the same
time, I’m not sure at what level the
lawyers need to look at these cases.”
Robinson said an important part
of an elder law attorney’s practice is
examination of investment documents.
He called the documents the respondents’ “entree” to making a sale.“
“The real business is telling
them to sell their certificates of
deposit and other investments and
buy their annuities, causing capital
gains and giving terrible financial
advice,” he said. “Clearly this is
unlicensed practice. Some of the
harms alleged in that complaint
were despicable.”
Robinson, who also chairs the
Bar’s Special Technology Advisory
Committee, said he expects to see
Continued on page 17
PAG E
12
A U G U S T 19 9 8
ELDER UPDATE
TO SERVE AND PROTECT
Broward deputy helps take bite out of crime against elders
By David Lee Simmons /Elder Update editor
P
aul Levy had basically the same
game plan that most Northerners
his age in the 1970s had: retire to
Florida, relax, take it easy.
But when you’re a New York
City detective, it’s not quite as easy
to stay away from the action —
especially when there’s so much
action going on in Florida, too.
So, after an aborted attempt at
relaxation, Levy got back in the
crime-prevention business, and his
return has been a blessing to the
Broward County Sheriff’s Department. After going from detective
to deputy, Levy has helped lead
the fight against crimes against the
elders.
At 78, he’s the oldest deputy
sheriff on duty in Broward County,
and one of the oldest in Florida.
But he certainly hasn’t slowed down.
Levy and his partner, Tony
Romano, work on a wide variety
of crime-prevention programs.
As part of a group called
Seniors and Lawmen Together,
Levy and Romano work with the
Senior Task Force and the Citizen
Observer Patrol (COP), the latter of
which serves strictly as a crimewatch group.
The group has been able to
refurbish 43 old police cars, place a
COP label on the side, and patrol
neighborhoods looking for suspicious activity.
“Some of us will have requests
from citizens to check their house
while they’re on vacation,” Levy
said. “They also proceed to accident
sites to see if they can be of help to
the deputy, so there’s lots of things
they can do.”
COP has numbers on its side,
with 3,000 volunteers — nearly as
large as the entire Broward Sheriff’s
Department, which has about 3,200
uniformed and civilian members. In
parts of some coverage areas, Levy
says, reported crime has dropped by
50 percent. And the cost to the taxpayers has been minimal.
“They’re out there, and the thugs
know they’re out there, and that’s
important right there,” Levy said.
“Crime prevention is one of the more
“If you keep your mind active and
you are doing something you like,
your life is going to last a lot longer
than someone who is sitting around
doing nothing.”
— Paul Levy,
Broward County Sheriff’s Deputy
important aspects of law enforcement. If you can prevent a crime, it
doesn’t happen.”
While crime-watch efforts have
applied a simple approach to an
obvious problem, Levy and others
have had to get sophisticated with
one of the most alarming trends in
crimes against elders: telemarketing
fraud.
Working together with Mature
Strategies and BellSouth, the
Broward Sheriff’s Department has
helped promote a campaign called
“Don’t Be Shy, Say Goodbye,”
which teaches elders how to handle
slick telemarketers.
First, they educate elders on the
fraudulent techniques.
“What they’ll do is call and get
you interested in a prize of a vacation you may want, and all you have
to do is send $250 for the processing
or the paperwork,” said Levy, who
also said telemarketers have tried to
obtain credit-card numbers during
their pitch. “That’s how they get
you.”
Levy has even heard of instances
where the same telemarketers who
have ripped off an elder will call
after the fact posing as a group that
can recover the lost money.
“So now,” Levy said, “they got
’em again.”
The awareness campaign
includes bookmarks and pamphlets
that teach elders how to look out for
these scams and how to react. They
also hold awareness meetings with
lesson plans to teach people about
telemarketing fraud.
“We tell people when they get a
call from someone they feel is trying
to defraud them, they are to call the
Senior Connection,” Levy said.
“They in turn are to notify the local
jurisdiction and then the local jurisdiction will take whatever action is
necessary.”
The Broward County Sheriff’s
Department has even gone one step
further in crime prevention, anticipating a bill that been proposed
before the Legislature that would
make it mandatory for every police
officer to take a sensitivity training
course for elders. Instead of waiting
for passage, the department is instituting one of its own.
Levy and Romano are the
instructors.
“The goal is to try to teach these
young deputies to cope with senior
citizens when they get a call,” Levy
said. “How to treat them, how to
understand what they’re going
through, how their emotions are,
how they can become panicky. A lot
of elders have never spoken to a
policeman, and a lot of deputies
don’t know how to communicate.”
Broward Sheriff Ken Jenne sees
the program as a forward-thinking
way to keep his office in touch with
the people it serves.
“Whenever there’s a distinct
population, be it elderly or whoever,
we need people exactly like Paul
who can relate to them,” Jenne said.
“Why? There’ll be crimes that won’t
go reported. But now, we’re ahead
of the ball because of what Paul
Levy commits to the agency.”
On a personal level, all of this
crime-fighting has kept Levy active
instead of becoming sedentary. He
plays tennis three to four times a
week and rides his bicycle eight to
ten miles in the morning before
going to work.
“I know that people who retire
die quickly,” he said. “I know that
they become couch potatoes and
they get all kind of sickness because
their minds are not active.
“If you keep your mind active
and you are doing something you
like, your life is going to last a lot
longer than someone who is sitting
around doing nothing.”
And Levy doesn’t see retiring
anytime soon, either.
When asked when he would
retire, Levy replied, “I have no idea.
I’m enjoying it now. I enjoy the
people I work with, and have a very
good supervisor. Why would I want
to quit?”
ELDER UPDATE
A U G U S T 19 9 8
PAG E
13
DIRECT DEPOSIT
Treasury Department hopes to balance recipient needs
with benefits of electronic payment
Treasury Department has
Tnewheannounced
key provisions of a
regulation to carry out a 1996
law requiring most federal payments
to be made electronically. The
Treasury regulation will allow payment recipients to continue receiving
paper checks if electronic deposit
would cause them hardship.
“We want to strike the right
balance between realizing the
tremendous taxpayer cost savings
from direct deposit while still
protecting the payment recipients
from possible disruption or hardship,”
Treasury Under Secretary John D.
Hawke, Jr. said. “The final rule will
emphasize recipient choice and the
importance of ensuring that recipients
are not forced into choices that are
not right for them.”
Treasury expects to issue its
final regulation this summer. The
announcement is being made in order
to give federal payment recipients
as much information as possible
about their choices under this new
law and also to provide federal
benefit agencies with a head start in
implementing this regulation.
The new regulation will implement provisions in the Debt Collection
Improvement Act of 1996 requiring
that all federal payments other than
tax refunds be made electronic funds
transfer — or EFT — beginning Jan.
2, 1999. The law gives the Secretary
of the Treasury broad authority to provide waivers from this requirement.
The payments covered by the
EFT include Social Security, veterans
benefits, Railroad Retirement benefits,
federal salaries and federal retiree
benefits and vendor payments.
Direct deposit of payments
through EFT has become increasingly
popular because it is safer, more
secure and, for most recipients, more
convenient than paper checks. The
EFT initiative will therefore significantly improve the way many
Americans receive their government
payments. In addition, EFT will
enable the government to achieve
significant cost savings and will
therefore save money for taxpayers.
In September 1997, Treasury and
its Financial Management Service
bureau issued a proposed EFT regulation and invited public comment.
Treasury received more than 200
comment letters from individuals
and organizations, including federal
payment recipients, consumer
organizations, government agencies,
financial institutions, and non-bank
financial service providers.
Treasury also held public meetings in Dallas, New York City,
Baltimore and Los Angeles.
Many of those providing comments urged Treasury to broaden and
liberalize its original proposal for
waivers available to allow individuals
to continue to receive paper checks.
Treasury has given serious consideration to all of the comments received
in formulating this final rule.
EFT FINAL REGULATION
Waivers
Any payment recipient who does
not have an account at a financial
institution will receive an automatic
waiver from the EFT requirement
until the Treasury Department serves
notice that an account meeting its
specifications is available to the
recipient (see “Access to Accounts
Specified by Treasury” below).
Once that account is available, those
payment recipients will be able to
decide whether they wish to sign up
for one of those accounts or continue
receiving a paper check.
In addition, payment recipients
may choose to continue receiving
paper checks for other reasons:
• Any individual will be eligible
for a financial hardship waiver if
receiving direct deposit will cost him
or her more than receiving a check.
• Any payment recipient with a
physical or mental disability, or a
geographic, language or literacy
barrier, will be eligible for a waiver
from the EFT requirements.
The Treasury Department
emphasizes that no payment will be
withheld or delayed for any reason
related to the implementation of EFT.
“The final rule will emphasize
recipient choice and the
importance of ensuring that
recipients are not forced
into choices that are not
right for them.”
— Treasury Under Secretary
John D. Hawke, Jr.
Waiver Information
and Disclosure
Access to Accounts
Specified by Treasury
Treasury is working with other
federal paying agencies (such as the
Social Security Administration) to
ensure that payment recipients know
what choices they have under this
regulation and can choose whatever
payment option is best for their
particular circumstances.
Under this final regulation,
broad categories of waivers, as
described above, allow recipients to
continue receiving paper checks.
The waivers are self certifying, which
means that payment recipients make
their own decisions as to whether or
not to sign up for direct deposit, if
they choose not to sign up for direct
deposit, they will continue to receive
paper checks.
Federal agencies will have discretion whether to require recipients to
submit written waiver certifications.
Treasury has been informed that
the Social Security Administration
will not require written waiver
certifications. Therefore, any Social
Security recipient who does not sign
up for direct deposit will continue to
receive his or her benefits by paper
check.
Federal agencies will be required
to notify all current check recipients
of all EFT options. That includes
enrolling in direct deposit, awaiting
the availability of the Treasury specified account, and electing waivers
that allow recipients to continue
receiving checks.
As part of the EFT initiative,
Treasury is working to develop a
low-cost account that will be offered
through federally insured financial
institutions for electronic receipt of
federal payments. This account will
be known as the Electronic Transfer
Account (ETA). Individuals who
receive a government payment
would be able to select an ETA at
any participating institution. The
ETA will be available to all payment
recipients, regardless of whether the
recipient has an existing account at a
financial institution.
The specific characteristics of
the ETA will be proposed in a Federal
Register notice to be released in the
near future.
In addition, Treasury has been
working with a number of states to
link the delivery of federal payments
to State Electronic Benefit Transfer
programs. This would allow federal
payment recipients to receive those
federal payments on the same card on
which they receive the state benefit,
such as food stamps.
Next Steps
Treasury expects to publish the
final EFT rule within 6 to 8 weeks.
In addition, Treasury will publish a
Federal Register notice describing the
proposed characteristics of the ETA in
the near future. The public will have
at least 30 days from the publication
Continued on page 14
PAG E
14
A U G U S T 19 9 8
ELDER UPDATE
Tips may help prevent auto theft
ith all the recent reports on
W
auto theft, motorists should
take extra effort to secure their
cars. The truth is at least 21 percent
of all automobile owners do not
lock their cars. The Florida AntiTheft Committee (F.A.C.T.)
Reported in 1996 that more than
100,000 vehicles were stolen in
Florida, which ranks our state
second in the United States for
vehicle thefts.
Within Polk County alone,
1,462 vehicles were stolen in 1996
and 2,580 vehicles were stolen in
1997. Of these vehicles stolen,
over two-thirds were recovered.
In an effort to decrease these
numbers, there are several crimereducing tips we should all follow:
• Close all windows, lock all
doors and take your keys with you.
• Never leave your engine
running, even if you’ll only be
gone for a minute. Vehicles are
commonly stolen at convenience
stores, gas stations and ATMs.
• Park in well-lighted areas.
Over 50 percent of vehicles are
stolen at night.
• Activate any theft deterrent
devices you may have. Examples
of these devices are steering wheel
locking bars, metal alloy collars
and alarm systems. Etching your
vehicle identification number (VIN)
in several places on the car is
another good deterrent.
• Do not leave your registration
or title in your car. File the title at
home and carry your registration in
DIRECT DEPOSIT
F
lorida Lifestyle Radio,” an hour-long show featuring news and
information of interest to elders, is now heard in 21 markets
throughout Florida. One of the regular segments of the program
features Department of Elder Affairs Secretary E. Bentley Lipscomb,
who interviews guests and discusses issues of importance to elders.
Here is a list of Florida’s Radio Network stations that carry the
show. Air times vary from community to community, so call the station
that is listed for your area to learn the exact day and time.
Daytona Beach - WNDB-AM (1150) 904/257-1150
Englewood - WENG-AM (1530) 941/474-3231
your purse or wallet. These two documents make your car easier to sell.
• Park your vehicle with the
wheels turned toward the curb,
even when parking in driveways
or parking lots. This makes your
vehicle difficult to tow.
If you drive an older model
vehicle, do not become complacent. Older cars are often stripped
for parts that are sold for two or
three times the value of the vehicle.
For more information regarding
auto theft reduction, call your local
sheriff’s or police department.
continued from page 13
date of the ETA notice to provide
Treasury with comments.
Treasury considers public education to be a crucial component
for success implementation of EFT.
Based on comprehensive market
research to learn more about the
characteristics of federal payment
recipients, Treasury is crafting an
extensive nationwide public education campaign.
This outreach will include
grassroots education through
consumer, community and other
organizations, as well as through the
publication of information materials,
media outreach, and public service
advertising.
Further Considerations
In anticipation of the effective
date for the EFT initiative, some federally insured depository institutions
have entered into, or have announced
plans to enter into, arrangements with
non-depository providers of payment
services, such as check cashers and
money transmitters.
Such arrangements may involve
giving recipients access to EFT
deposits in their insured accounts
through the uninsured third-party
provider. Treasury is considering
whether to propose a regulation covering those arrangements. Any such
proposed action would be published
for public comment.
Eustis / Leesburg / Lady Lake WKIQ-AM (1240) 352/357-1240
Fernandina Beach WYHI-AM (1570) 904/277-0630
Milton / Pensacola WEBY-AM (1330) 850/623-1330
Ocala / Gainesville WOCA-AM (1370) 352/732-8000
Orlando / Daytona Beach / Melbourne WWNZ-AM (740) 407/661-1900
St. Augustine - WFOY-AM (1240) 904/829-3416
Sarasota - WTMY-AM (1280) 941/365-0521
Tallahassee WTAL-AM (1450) / WTAL-FM (105.7) 850/671-1450
Tampa / St. Pete - WHNZ-AM (570) 813/522-6397
Winter Haven - WSIR-AM (1490) 941/295-9411
Zephyrhills - WZHR-AM (1400) 352/576-1350
Come visit the
Department of Elder Affairs
ON THE
INTERNET
http://www.state.fl.us/doea/doea.html
ELDER UPDATE
A U G U S T 19 9 8
PAG E
15
Web offers loads of
weather info
By Tom McMullen /Elder Update correspondent
or most of my life Florida
Fpreoccupation
weather has been a major
and a never-ending
puzzlement.
We used to say that, “You
could set your watch,” by the
onset of the daily summertime
afternoon shower. Almost anybody
could look at the cloud formations
and predict whether or not we
could reasonably expect to have
showers, lightning and thunderstorms, or hail. In those earlier
days it was simply a matter of
prognostication... educated
guessing.
Now we have sophisticated
meteorological forecasts. For
those of you who cannot go
through the day without a sense
of weather direction, my purpose
here is to offer a way to explore the
World Wide Weather Web.
To begin, choose your favorite
web browser, and, in the search
field, type the word “weather.” You
will probably receive something
beyond 2 million hits. Among them
you will find these:
http://www.worldclimate.com/ —
More than 80,000 weather
records for 20,000-plus weather
stations around the world.
http://mrneal.com/navprec.htm
— Weather radar data from
your area of the country, and,
for the rest of the world.
http://www.nndc.noaa.gov/0036w
teducation.htm — A site for
learning terminology (and folklore), gathering weather proverbs, and a glossary of weather
terms from the University of
Oklahoma (Norman), as well as
an Elizabethan meteorological
terms.
http://www.amerisar.org/wsatlist.
htm — This is a list of weather
satellites.
http://weather.lycos.com/worldm
aps.asp — Includes U.S.
Weather forecasts for high
temperatures, low temperatures,
jet stream behavior, rainfall,
hurricane from 500 experts.
http://www.earthwatch.com/ —
“The first 3D weather web site
giving you continuously updated satellite, radar forecasts, and
3D fly-throughs. StormWatch
severe weather watches,
warnings and advisories are
updated every ten minutes.
Sprint
NEW
http://bestmall.com/www/weather/
— A link to many of weather
links: Intellicast, the Weather
Channel, Weather Network, and
Worldwide Weather.
http://www.floridaweather.com/
forecast.shtml — Direct links
to weather conditions in many
Florida cities.
Some of these sites have search
machines that allow you to type in
a city name. In most cases the
search will return a weather report
from hundreds of worldwide
cities.(You may be curious about
the weather where you’ve been or
where you’re going.)
This is a painless way of forecasting the weather for some area
of the world where you might be
Continued on page 16
PAG E
16
A U G U S T 19 9 8
ELDER UPDATE
Business opportunities can be
anything but
T
he newspaper ad jumps off the
page: “Be your own boss! Set
your own hours and earn thousands of dollars a week!” These
ads catch the attention of many
retirees who want to supplement
their retirement income and fill
their free time. They may turn to
their savings in hopes of making
a profit. The promise of lucrative
earnings is alluring, but before you
invest in a home-based or other
business opportunity, there are
some things you should know.
One of the busiest regulatory
programs within the Division
involves Business Opportunities.
The following information should
be of interest to those of you
thinking about purchasing your
own business: A business opportunity is an offer to help a person
start a business by providing
products, equipment, supplies
and/or services. “Biz Ops” often
lead the list of consumer complaints. People have lost thousands
of dollars on bogus or misleading
business opportunities.
The Florida Sale of Business
Opportunities Act administered by
the Division of Consumer Services
is designed to protect consumers
when the investment is over $500.
Wyeth
Ayerst
PICK-UP
Department
of
Agriculture
and
Consumer
Services
This act requires certain sellers of
business opportunities to file a disclosure document and to register
with the department. The seller is
required to give potential buyers a
copy of an approved disclosure
statement at least 3 working days
prior to accepting any money.
Read the disclosure!
Understand what you are buying.
Ask questions, get all promises in
writing, and be wary of claims of
extraordinarily high earnings.
Remember the adage, “If it sounds
too good to be true, it probably is!”
You can call the department’s
hotline (1-800/HELP FLA) or
850/922-2966 to find out if a
business is registered with the
department and if there have been
any complaints filed against it.
Be smart! Don’t let some
smooth talking con artist separate
you from your money.
The Division of Consumer
Services is part of the Department
of Agriculture and Consumer
Services, serving as the state’s
clearinghouse for consumer complaints, information and protection.
It functions as the U.S. Consumer
Product Safety Commission’s
agent in Florida regarding
product recalls, inspections and
investigations.
During the last fiscal year,
the division processed more than
500,000 consumer complaints and
inquiries. Our toll-free consumer
hotline, 1-800 HELP-FLA, is one
of the busiest in the nation. In
addition, consumers may request
information and file complaints
with the Division on the World
Wide Web at www.800helpfla.com.
The Division also has responsibility
for a number of regulatory laws,
and conducts investigations
involving unfair and deceptive
trade practices.
Web offers loads of weather info
continued from page 15
planning a visit. There are snow
predictions for those who ski, water
temperatures for swimmers, weather forecasts for fisher persons
(http://www.letsfish.com/sunny.ht
ml, clarifications of El Niño
(http://www.elnino.noaa.gov/, and
fascinating scientific and cultural
information to satisfy every taste.
(I am planning a column on
elders whose work involves computers and/or the Internet. If you
are among those people please
contact me at [email protected]. Let me know what sort
of work you do and how you
accomplish the necessary tasks.)
I would encourage you to ex-
plore the weather world for whatever inquiries you might wish.
Any good search engine should
make available more-than-youever-wanted-to-know about this
vital environmental aspect.
Try searching for things like
“Florida Weather” or “Hurricanes”
or “tornado data.” (In these latter two
you will find statistical information
as well as the latest on the Miami
“Hurricanes” and other sports teams
with the name “Tornado.”)
Comments and suggestions are
welcome, and assistance is available. (Contact Tom McMullen by email at [email protected]
or [email protected]).
ELDER UPDATE
A U G U S T 19 9 8
Volunteering comes easy
to this Legislator
ho is a Silver-Haired
W
Legislator? Erica Lowenthal
of Margate in Broward County is
a Silver-Haired Legislator. Born
in Germany,
Erica arrived in
the United States
with her family
when she was 12
years old. After
graduating from
school, she
worked in her
uncle’s knitwear
Erica Lowenthal factory, rising to
the position of
general supervisor.
She married Henry, a lab
technician, and convinced him to
HEAT WAVE
continued from page 1
Preventing Heat Stress
Keep Cool — Spend as much time
as you can in cooler surroundings — whether it’s a cooler
surroundings such as a cooler
room in the house, or the
library, a shopping mall or
senior center.
Air Conditioning can provide
lifesaving relief from heat
stress.
Fans — When placed in a window,
a fan can be used to draw cool
air into the house at night.
Attic fans provide great air
circulation.
Baths and Showers — Since cool
water removes excess body heat
25 times faster than cool air,
cool baths and showers provide
fast relief from heat.
Water — Perspiration is the
foundation of the body’s
cooling system. Therefore, it is
important to supply your body
with enough liquids to keep
your cooling system working.
Begin drinking before you
feel thirsty. Also drink often in
reasonable amounts and drink
go into his own business. She and
her husband owned and operated
the Dental Laboratory until he
fell ill, at which time in 1974,
they moved with their children to
Florida.
Erica was now the breadwinner in the family. She is still
grateful for the help and emotional
support she received from
Hospice. She has been volunteering for Hospice for more than ten
years in many capacities and
departments, including Hospice
Speakers Bureau.
Volunteering comes easily to
Erica. She started her volunteering
“career” with the New York City
Board of Elections. Since moving
to Florida, she was in the
“Sheriff’s Posse” Department
where she trudged through fields
and swampy areas seeking missing and lost children.
She is vice-chairman of
Margate’s Bureau of Adjustments
where she dispenses liquor
licenses as well as code exemptions. She has been treasurer of
the Margate Democratic Club
for 10 years and is on the
Broward Democratic Executive
Committee.
Following in her children’s
footsteps (or maybe it’s the other
way around, since both a son and
daughter are detectives in other
city police departments), she is a
more than is needed to satisfy
thirst.
Clothing — Loose fitting, lightweight, light-colored clothing
is more comfortable in hot
weather. Use a hat or umbrella
to protect head and neck from
the sun.
Cooking and Eating — It is best
to avoid major cooking during
the hottest part of the day.
Also, hot foods and heavy
meals are best avoided during
heat waves.
Salt - Limit the use of salt.
Avoid Alcohol — Alcohol acts as
a diuretic, resulting in fast water
loss. Use alcohol sparingly or
not at all.
Keep in Touch - If you live alone,
ask a relative or neighbor
checks on you daily.
• Dizziness
• Rapid heartbeat
• Diarrhea
• Nausea
• Cramps
• Throbbing headache
• Dry skin (no sweating)
• Chest pain
• Great weakness
• Mental changes
• Breathing problems
• Vomiting
NOTE: These symptoms can
also signal other major problems
such as heart failure. If you experience any of them, call a doctor
immediately.
WARNING SIGNS
Early Symptoms — Feeling hot,
uncomfortable and listless are
mild symptoms and usually
pose no threat unless symptoms
persist. However, because of
the serious signs of heat stress
listed below are usually preceded by the milder ones, it is
important that you get medical
attention if you experience the
following:
* HEAT-RELATED
ILLNESSES
Heat Stroke is a medical emergency requiring immediate
attention and treatment by a
doctor. Primary symptoms are
a temperature of more than 104
degrees and an altered mental
state, such as confusion. Other
symptoms include: faintness,
dizziness, headache, nausea,
loss of consciousness, rapid
pulse and flushed skin.
Heat Exhaustion takes longer to
develop than other heat-related
illnesses. It results from a loss
of body water and salt. The
PAG E
17
EARS!
Y
20
volunteer with the Margate Police
Department. With all this, she
hasn’t forgotten Hospice and still
volunteers on a regular basis.
She still finds time to babysit
for her seven grandchildren, writes
bills for FSHL, chair the Health
and Social Services Legislative
Committee in Tallahassee and be
a valuable FSHL member of Area
10.
symptoms include: weakness,
heavy sweating, nausea and
giddiness. Heat exhaustion is
treated by resting in bed away
from the heat, and drinking
cool fluids.
Floridians wishing to contribute to help low-income elders
pay for fans or emergency cooling expenses should contact their
local Area Agencies on Aging by
calling 1-800-96-ELDER or by
seeking the Area Agency on
Aging listing in the local telephone directory.
Marketing practices
continued from page 11
greater proliferation of the sale of
living trusts by nonlawyers, adding
at least 20 Internet sites currently
sell “common law trusts” from
between $15 and $4,000. “They say
it slices, it dices, you can leave your
spouse, no obligation; you’ll never
have to pay taxes again,” he said.
“It’s all over the place.”
Mary Smith Judd is the associate
editor of the Florida Bar News. This
article originally appeared in the July
1 edition of the Florida Bar News and
is reprinted with permission.
PAG E
18
A U G U S T 19 9 8
Florida
The Human Rights Advocacy
Committee (HRAC) is seeking volunteers who want to help protect
the constitutional and human rights
of any client within a program or
facility operated, funded, licensed
or regulated by the Department of
Children and Families.
There are 34 HRACs in the
state with more than 330 volunteers
who come from all walks of life.
All new members are provided full
training and mentoring.
If you’re interested, you can
call one of three members: Jean
Harvell (District 1) toll-free at 1800/342-0825; Sara Parramore
(District 2) at 850/488-9875; or
Jetta Gardner (District 3) toll-free at
1-800/342-9004.
The Long-Term Care
Ombudsman Council for Districts 9
and 15 (Palm Beach, Martin, St.
Lucie, Indian River and
Okeechobee Counties) is seeking
volunteers to advocate for residents
of nursing homes and assisted liv-
ELDER UPDATE
Volunteer Help Wanted
ing facilities. Governor-appointed
volunteer advocates investigate
complaints and conduct annual
inspections. Call 561/837-5038.
Alachua County
indigent elders in their own homes.
Minimum two-hour weekly commitment required. Various items
also needed. Call Carole Schwartz
at 954/537-2936.
Santa Fe Community Care
needs volunteers to deliver meals to
homebound elderly in Gainesville
one day a week. Volunteer
Coordinator also needed. Call
Karen Warren at 352/336-3822.
Dade County
Broward County
Duval County
The N.E. Focal Point
Alzheimer’s Day Care Center,
located at 301 NW 2nd Ave. in
Deerfield Beach, needs volunteers
to help Alzheimer’s victims participate in activities. Please call Dottie
Garfinkel at 954/480-4467.
Mayo Clinic Jacksonville is
seeking volunteers for a study testing the effectiveness of photodynamic therapy to treat advanced
breast cancer that has spread to the
skin. Call the Clinical Studies Unit
between 8 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays at
904/953-8749.
Broward County Elderly and
Veteran Services Division needs
volunteers to visit and help frail and
The Activities Department at
Brookwood Gardens in Homestead
is seeking volunteers for fun and
games with elderly residents, seven
days a week. Call 305/246-1200.
Hillsborough County
The District VI Long-Term
Care Ombudsman Council is seeking volunteers who are interested in
maintaining safety, welfare, and the
rights of residents in nursing
homes, assisted living facilities and
adult family care homes. Consumer
advocates, minorities, physicians
and dietitians encouraged to apply.
Call Martie Daemy at 813/8717185.
Leon County
The Department of Elder
Affairs is seeking volunteers to be
trained to provide telephone health
insurance counseling at the department’s headquarters in Tallahassee.
Telephone counseling is needed for
people living in Florida counties
without a SHINE (Serving Health
Insurance Needs of Elders) program and for those researching a
move to Florida from another state.
Potential volunteers need to be
able to commit 3-4 hours a week
following training and orientation.
For more information, call Louise
Engle at 850/414-2080.
Continued on page 20
Prudential
Health Care
PICK-UP
Prudential Health Care is a corporate member of the Elder Floridians Foundation, which partially underwrites Elder Update.
ELDER UPDATE
A U G U S T 19 9 8
PAG E
19
The alleys of my hometown
By Bill Roberts
ebster defines an alley as a
W
narrow walk or passage. I
guess he never visited my hometown of Roebling, N.J. because
he would have had to add this
definition: a commercial lane
between two streets.
This village, located south of
Trenton, was the private home of
John A. Roebling and Sons, Inc.,
known for its
production of
wire and wire
rope used in
the construction of the
George
Washington
and Golden
Gate Bridges.
Mr. Roebling
Bill Roberts
was the
designer and builder of the
Brooklyn Bridge before the turn
of the century.
During the 1920s and ’30s,
the town consisted of seven
streets beginning with Second
Ave. at the factory gates and
ending with Eighth Avenue to the
south where the baseball field and
school were located. A service
alley ran between all streets.
The houses, with fenced-in
backyards, were a combination
of row and duplex homes rented
only to employees of the company. I was born and raised in a
duplex on Sixth Avenue sharing
an alley with Seventh Avenue,
which features row houses. I
remember the alleys as a part of
a much simpler way of life where
neighbors looked out for one
another as they lived through the
devastating Depression.
Of course, the alley was the
means by which the sanitation
engineers (we called them
garbage men in my day) were
able to collect the garbage that
was placed at the back of the
yard in such a way that they could
pick it up by reaching over the
fence. It even had to be rolled up
in several layers of newspaper.
Plastic bags hadn’t been invented yet and people had never
used the word recycling, but
actually were doing it all the time.
In those days, we used things
over and over. Milk bottles were
returned to the milkman and soda
bottles had a deposit. We even
saved string and tin foil as we
were not the throw-away society
that we are today.
Before the modern refrigerator, our ice-boxes were on the
back porch so they were easily
accessible to the ice-man as he
traveled up and down the alleys.
Every morning, you checked the
ice-box to see if you needed any
ice. If so, you placed a card in
the back kitchen window, turned
in such a way that it indicated
what size piece of ice you wanted
in the box.
Well, one day my mother told
me to put the card in the window
and the money in the ice-box.
Later that day, when I was reading in my room, I looked out the
window and saw the ice truck
go by. Suddenly realizing I had
forgotten to put the card in the
window, I ran downstairs,
grabbed the money, chased the
truck down the alley and caught
it about halfway down the block.
By the time I got back home
with that piece of ice I was a
Real Kool Kid.
As we did not have refrigerators, we surely did not have oil
burners, either. So during the late
summer and early fall, along
came the trucks down the alley
with their loads of coal which
would assure us of heat and hot
water during the winter.
While the fellows were putting the chute down through the
back cellar window, we always
made sure that we stuffed rags
around the cellar door so the
black dust could be kept at a
minimum. I can still see the
delivery men carrying those
heavy bags and pouring the coal
down the chute.
Other business was carried
out along the alley. Mr. Stokley
always came through the alley
with this truck full of fresh
vegetables, and then there was
the horseradish man who always
blew his whistle and who would
sit on your back step and grind
out the quantity that you wanted.
It was the real thing compared to
the mild concoction we get in
bottles today.
If you heard a clanging bell,
you knew it was time to have
your knives and saws sharpened.
The work was done as the truck
sat in the alley. The truckload of
live chickens always bothered
me as the ladies would go out to
the truck and pick out the ones
they wanted and the driver would
end their lives right then and
there (the chickens, that is).
I always knew we might have
fish for supper when I heard a fog
horn down the alley. You had the
fish cleaned but always kept the
head and tail as a start of a good
fish chowder. “Any rags today”
was another call you heard in the
alley occasionally. I am sure there
were others that folks will
remember from those days.
The alleys served purposes
other than commercial. That is
the way many of us went to
school by going down toward a
main street and cutting through to
Eighth Avenue. It was where we
kids shot off our firecrackers
during the Fourth of July. As we
couldn’t buy firecrackers in the
company store, we always went
down to a section called Knickerbocker to get our noise-makers.
We often would have foot and
bicycle races in the alley. You had
to be good or you would wind up
with bloody knuckles from hitting
the fence.
One thing that puzzled old
Tom the cop was how most of
the gates along the alley between
Sixth and Seventh Avenue
wound up in the ballpark one
mischievous night before a
It seems like
Only Yesterday
Please write and share
your stories with us.
Send your submission, with
your phone number and a
photo of yourself to: Editor,
Elder Update
4040 Esplanade Way
Tallahassee FL 32399-7000
national election. I wonder, also,
and I am sure that will raise a
few smiles.
The alleys were not dirty or
just a place to put junk because
people kept up their yards as
good neighbors who were proud
of their little village. It was not
unusual to see folks strolling
down the alleys in the summertime to see the many gardens
that were growing. Those who
had a green thumb had beautiful
flower gardens that would have
put some professional gardeners
to shame.
There are probably those who
think, from what I write, that I
would like to go back to those
days. I surely would not, but it
gave me a wonderful background
enabling me to appreciate the
lifestyle I have today.
Bill Roberts lives in Winter Park.
Florida
Power &
Light Company
Budget Billing, 62Plus Payment
Plan, Automatic Funds Transfer, . . .
are only a few of the many
programs designed to meet the
needs of FPL’s senior customers.
Florida Power & Light Co. is a
corporate member of the Elder
Floridians Foundation, which
partially underwrites Elder Update.
PAG E
20
A U G U S T 19 9 8
Q:
I receive $500 a month
from Social Security and
am terrified that mandatory direct
deposit of my check may have
some unintended consequences.
Can you tell me what is happening
on this issue?
According to Social
Security, by December of
this year, every person receiving
Social Security will have their
checks going into their bank
accounts by direct deposit or
electronic benefits transfer. For
more information about the pros
and cons of direct deposit, call
the Mid-Florida Area Agency
on Aging, the Center for Aging
Resources, at their toll-free
number, 1-800/262-2243.
Also, see the story on page 13
of this issue.
A:
Q:
My husband has just been
diagnosed with diabetes.
His father lost both legs to this
terrible disease, and I want to be
sure this doesn’t happen to my
Questions & Answers
husband. It didn’t seem to me like
the doctor gave us much information except for about taking the
insulin and testing his blood sugar
with the little machine. What
causes a person to have to have a
foot or leg amputated and how do
we prevent it?
First of all, if you haven’t
done so, ask to talk to a
diabetes nurse. Most hospitals
have one on staff. They often have
more time to provide education
and training than the doctor has.
Second, be sure to follow the
dietary instructions that you
were given. Controlling your
husband’s blood sugar day to day
will be his biggest contribution to
preventing the terrible complications that can come with diabetes.
The American Diabetes Association estimates that diabeticrelated amputation could be
A:
Volunteer Help Wanted
continued from page 18
Martin County
The Martin County Health
Department needs volunteers for
the following programs: Pediatrics,
Environmental Health, Family
Planning, Christmas for Seniors
Program, Flu Vaccine Assistance
and a Historian. Call Tom Powers
at 561/221-4037.
Council on Aging of Martin
County’s Encore! Thrift Shop at
2471 S.E. Ocean Blvd. At the Cedar
Pointe Plaza in Stuart urgently
needs donations of quality clothing,
accessories, jewelry and other items.
Call 561/220-3394.
Orange County
The Alzheimer’s Respite Care
Program has volunteer staff openings at its day care center for group
and one-on-one activity assistants
as well as music and art project
leaders. Liability insurance and
training provided. Call Marlene
Farber at 407/423-5311.
Pinellas County
Volunteers are needed for the
Senior Victims Advocate Program at
ELDER UPDATE
Tampa Bay Regional Council Area
on Aging. This program serves
persons 60-plus years of age who
have been victims of crime.
Volunteers will assist in a variety of
duties to support these vulnerable
seniors through the criminal justice
process. Call Gabrielle Wiechec,
victim advocate, 813/577-5151, ext.
279 for more information.
Sarasota County
The Sarasota Memorial Hospital
has a wide variety of volunteer
opportunities, including cardiac
units, central transport/discharge
services, Early Birds, emergency
care center information desk, gift
shop sales, mailroom and Waldemere Medical Plaza. For more
information, call 941/917-7277.
reduced by 50 percent if patients
were routinely tested for neuropathy, educated to prevent
injury or complications and
fitted with appropriate footwear.
Neuropathy can cause
numbness, tingling or pain in
the feet or legs. It develops
gradually, usually in the feet.
As it most often causes lack of
protective sensation in the feet,
skin injuries can occur without
being perceived by the patient as
painful and then become chronic
wounds. If left untreated, these
injuries can become serious
wound problems for an estimated
15 percent of people with diabetes, resulting in chronic infection, gangrene and amputation.
Talk to your physician about
testing for nerve damage in your
husband’s feet.
You can also take the following basic steps in proper foot care:
• Never go barefoot either
indoors or outdoors.
• If your feet become excessively dry, lubricate them with a
thin film of moisturizing cream
on the soles immediately after
bathing.
• Avoid exposing feet to
extremes. Never walk on hot sand
or pavement. Protect feet from
sunburn with sunscreen. Check
bath water with elbow before
entering; it should not be too hot.
Do not use hot water bottles or a
heating pad to warm cold feet.
Instead, wear loose socks in bed
Report of Assisted Living Facilities Denied,
Revoked, or Suspended (May, 1998)
Facility Name
Facility Address
Status
Premiere Place
of Broward
668 NW 90th Terrace, Bldg. 24
Plantation, FL 33324
Closed. Denied.
LMJ Healthcare
11120 NW 39th St.
Coral Springs, FL 33065
Closed. Revoked.
G.E.M. Care, Inc.
13725 SW 13th St.
Miami, FL 33144
Closed. Denied.
Birdie Home Care
20928 SW 123 Court
Miami, FL 33177
Closed. Denied
Tinina Care
3311 NW 87th St.
Miami, FL 33147
Closed. Denied
Volusia County
The Bureau of Braille and Talking Book Library Services seeks
volunteers to produce and circulate
Braille and cassette books and magazines. Variety of tasks included.
Call Doug Hall at 904/239-6040 or
toll-free at 1-800/226-6075.
if feet are cold. Never use hot or
cold soaks for your feet.
• Nails should be trimmed
straight across; gently round
corners with a fine emery or
pumice stone.
• Corns or calluses should
not be cut; consult a physician or
podiatrist for this type of care.
Also, do not use commercial corn
or callus removers, foot pads or
arch supports.
• Proper footwear is recommended. Only comfortable, wellfitting shoes should be worn. Do
not choose shoes with open toes
or heels, and do not wear sandals.
• Purchase new shoes late in
the day when feet are slightly
enlarged to assure they will fit
comfortably at any time. New
shoes should never be worn more
than two hours at one time.
• No shoes should be worn
more than five hours at one time.
It is recommended that one pair
be worn in the morning, one in
the afternoon and another in the
evening.
• Do not wear shoes without
socks or stockings. Socks or stockings with seams should be avoided. Cotton and cotton blends are
recommended. Socks should be
clean and changed daily.
• Do not use garters or elastic
to hold up stockings, and do not
use panty girdles that are tight
around the legs.
Again, develop a good relationship with a diabetic nurse.
Experience will show that a
diabetic nurse is maybe the most
important person on your diabetes health-care team.
ELDER UPDATE
A U G U S T 19 9 8
PAG E
ELDER HELPLINE
Florida Elder
Helpline Directory
(County-by-county listings)
A Starting Point
Alachua ..........1-800-262-2243
Baker.................904-259-1388
Bay ....................850-769-3468
Bradford ........1-800-262-2243
Brevard..............407-631-2747
Broward ............954-714-3464
Calhoun .............850-674-4163
Charlotte ............941-637-8019
Citrus .............1-800-262-2243
Clay....................904-284-5977
Collier................941-774-8443
Columbia........1-800-262-2243
Dade ..................305-670-4357
DeSoto ...............941-494-5965
Dixie ..................800-262-2243
Duval .................904-798-9503
Escambia ...........850-432-1475
Flagler ............1-888-252-6110
or 904-437-7222
Franklin .............850-697-3760
Gadsden.............850-627-2223
Gilchrist .............800-262-2243
Glades................941-946-1821
Gulf....................850-229-8466
Hamilton ........1-800-262-2243
Hardee...............941-773-6880
Hendry...............941-983-7088
Hernando .......1-800-262-2243
HighlandsAvon Park .........941-452-1288
Lake Placid .......941-465-1199
Sebring .............941-382-1288
Hillsborough......813-273-3779
Holmes ..............850-547-2345
Indian River.......561-569-8555
Jackson Marianna ..........850-482-5028
Graceville..........850-263-4650
Jefferson ............850-342-0271
Lafayette .........1-800-262-2243
Lake ...............1-800-262-2243
1-800-96-ELDER ( 800-963-5337 )
Information and referral is available at your
nearest Area Agency on Aging or Elder Helpline.
The Elder Helpline is the starting point if you are seeking information about aging
issues, looking for an aging service provider, or wanting to volunteer. Elder Helplines
are called by different names in different communities; for example, Senior Connection
(Broward County) or Age Link (Lee County). You can contact the Elder Helpline
nearest you by calling either the county number listed below or the statewide helpline
number, 1-800-963-5337, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Florida Area Agencies on Aging
(Listings for Area Agencies on Aging)
NORTHWEST FLORIDA
AREA AGENCY ON AGING
6500-B Pensacola Boulevard
Pensacola, FL 32505
850-484-5150
(Escambia, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, and Walton
Counties)
AREA AGENCY ON AGING
OF NORTH FLORIDA, INC.
2639 N. Monroe St., Suite 145-B
Tallahassee, FL 32303
850-488-0055
(Bay, Calhoun, Franklin, Gadsden, Gulf,
Holmes, Jackson, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty,
Madison, Taylor, Wakulla, and Washington
Counties)
MID FLORIDA AREA AGENCY ON AGING
5700 S.W. 34th St., Ste. 222
Gainesville, FL 32608
352-378-6649
1-800-262-2243
(Alachua, Bradford, Citrus, Columbia, Dixie,
Gilchrist, Hamilton, Hernando, Lafayette,
Lake, Levy, Marion, Putnam, Sumter,
Suwannee, and Union Counties)
NORTHEAST FLORIDA AREA
AGENCY ON AGING
590 S. Ellis Road
Jacksonville, FL 32254
904-786-5111
1-888-242-4464
(Baker, Clay, Duval, Flagler, Nassau, St. Johns,
and Volusia Counties)
TAMPA BAY REGIONAL PLANNING COUNCIL
AREA AGENCY ON AGING
9455 Koger Blvd.
Hendry Building
St. Petersburg, FL 33702
813-577-5151 (St. Petersburg)
813-224-9380 (Tampa)
(Pasco and Pinellas Counties)
WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA AREA
AGENCY ON AGING
5911 Breckenridge Pkwy., Suite B
Tampa, FL 33610
1-800-336-2226 or 1-813-623-2244
(Hardee, Highlands, Hillsborough, Manatee,
and Polk Counties)
SENIOR RESOURCE ALLIANCE
1011 Wymore Rd., Suite 207
Winter Park, FL 32789
407-623-1330
(Brevard, Orange, Osceola and Seminole
Counties)
AREA AGENCY ON AGING OF
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA
2285 First Street
Fort Myers, FL 33901
941-332-4233
(Charlotte, Collier, DeSoto, Glades, Hendry,
Lee, and Sarasota Counties)
AREA AGENCY ON AGING OF PALM
BEACH/TREASURE COAST, INC.
8895 N. Military Trail, Suite 201-C
Palm Beach Gardens, 33410
561-694-7601
(Indian River, Martin, Okeechobee, Palm
Beach and St. Lucie Counties)
AREA AGENCY ON AGING OF
BROWARD COUNTY
5345 N.W. 35th Ave.
Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33309
954-714-3456
(Broward County)
ALLIANCE FOR AGING
9500 S. Dadeland Blvd., Suite 400
Miami, FL 33156
305-670-6500
(Dade and Monroe Counties)
21
Lee.....................941-433-3900
Leon ..................850-575-9694
Levy ...................800-262-2243
Liberty ...............850-643-5613
Madison.............850-973-2006
Manatee .............941-742-5818
Marion ...........1-800-262-2243
Martin................561-283-2242
Monroe..............305-292-4520
So. Florida ........800-273-2044
Nassau Fernandina ......904-261-0701
Westside ...........904-845-3332
Okaloosa ...........850-833-9165
Okeechobee.......941-462-5180
Orange...............407-623-1380
Osceola..............407-623-1380
Palm Beach in-county..................930-5040
out-of-county ....561-547-8677
Pasco in-state..............800-861-8111
out-of-state .......813-576-1533
Pinellas ..............813-576-1533
Polk ...................941-534-5320
Putnam...........1-800-262-2243
Santa Rosa .........850-626-5823
Sarasota North ................941-955-2122
Englewood........941-475-4056
North Port.........941-475-4056
Seminole............407-623-1380
St. Johns .........1-888-252-6110
or 904-794-0740
St. Lucie.............561-465-1485
Sumter ...........1-800-262-2243
Suwannee ..........904-364-5673
Taylor ................850-584-4924
Union .............1-800-262-2243
Volusia...............904-253-4700
Wakulla..............850-926-7145
Walton ...............850-892-8168
Washington ........850-638-6216
If you need information about, or referral to, a
service provider outside the state of Florida, call the
national Eldercare Locator Service at 1-800-677-1116.
An information specialist is ready to assist you
Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. EST.
For people with Telecommunication Devices for the
Deaf (TDDs), all Elder Helplines, as well as the
Eldercare Locator Service, can be accessed through
the Florida Relay Service at 1-800-955-8771.
PAG E
22
10-13
Orlando — 1998 Florida Aging
Network Training Conference.
Sponsored by the Florida
Council on Aging. This year’s
theme: “The Magic of Aging.”
Peabody Orlando Hotel.
Registration: $40 individual,
$60 organizational nonprofit/
public, $12 senior. Call:
850/222-8877.
MONDAY
St. Petersburg — Alzheimer’s
support group, for caregivers.
6 p.m. Neighborly Senior
Services Lealman Adult Day
Care Center. 3455 58th Ave. N.
Call: 813/573-9444.
A U G U S T 19 9 8
Calendar of Events
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
Hollywood — National
Association of Federal Retired
Employees, Chapter 162
meeting. Third Tuesday only.
2 p.m. Multi-Purpose Center,
2030 Polk St. Call: 954/9211714 or 954/923-7965.
Orlando — NYSUT-Teacher
Retirees in Florida. First
Wednesday only. Golden Corral,
Hwy 436 & Grant St. 11 a.m.
Oviedo — Children of Aging
Parents (CAPS) support group,
Group III. Fourth Tuesday only.
11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Center for
Health & Wellness. Call:
407/629-5771.
Tallahassee — AARP Chapter 376
meeting. Fourth Monday only.
2 p.m. Tallahassee Senior
Center, Old Armory, 1400 N.
Monroe St. Call: 850/222-9878.
Sebastian — Bereavement support
group. Second and fourth Wednesday only. 6:30 p.m. Our
Savior Lutheran Church, 1850
6th Ave. Call: 561/567-8144,
ext. 380.
Winter Park — Children of Aging
Parents (CAPS) support group,
Group II. Third Monday only.
7-8:30 p.m. Miller Center, 2010
Mizell Ave. Call: 407/629-5771.
Winter Park — Children of Aging
Parents (CAPS) support group,
Group I. Fourth Tuesday only.
4-5:30 p.m. Miller Center, 2010
Mizell Ave. Call: 407/629-5771.
Stages of the Soul
tion course I can find. I’m in
therapy. I’m busy all the time, you
know, but — nothing helps. I keep
feeling so empty.
“What is it I’m not getting?”
she asked, more to herself, I
thought, than to me. “What am I
supposed to do?”
I looked at Rita and wanted to
tell her that the pain she was feeling was not there simply to torment
her. These feelings of depression
and emptiness were symptoms of
something far more fundamental.
They stemmed from a kind of
primal pain of separation that we
all feel — a separation from something deep in our hearts and souls.
We’re all in a state of mourning
for something we’ve lost, I wanted
to tell her, though we may not
identify it this way. And all of us
are desperate to get it back again.
But I didn’t say any of this.
Because I knew these words would
not take away her pain. Instead,
I did what I’d done before when
students spoke to me of emptiness
and separation. I quoted several
continued from page 24
the extensive research material
available, it was clear to me that
when it’s time for ideas of meaning
and spirituality to take root in a
person’s life, they will.
If the time is not yet ripe, they
won’t.
Of the many intense encounters
that took place in my teaching, a
single moment stands out in my
memory above the rest. One
morning after class was over I
was walking in the corridor and
was accosted by a student named
Rita, a chicly dressed woman of a
certain age, with large hoop earrings and eyes that radiated a bit of
agitation and a hint of despair.
“Can I speak to you for a
minute?” she asked.
I stopped and waited.
“I feel like I’m on a treadmill,”
she said, talking with a haunted
urgency. “I go to these Elderhostel
programs. I volunteer for charity
work. I attend every adult educa-
ELDER UPDATE
THURSDAY
Tampa — Arthritis Foundationsponsored rheumatoid support
group. First Thursday only.
Noon-1 p.m. Steak & Ale,
8615 56th St. Each person
responsible for lunch. Call:
813/914-7903.
New Port Richey — “Helping the
Elderly with Legal Problems.”
1-4 p.m. Half-hour appointments,
twice a month. West Central
Florida Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association, 6640 Van
Buren St. (Claude Pepper Senior
Center). Call: 813/848-8888.
Pembroke Pines — Depression
support group. Sponsored by
Memorial Senior Partners.
1 p.m. AARP Senior Resource
verses from the great Sufi poet
Rumi — verses that tell the story
of a reed plucked from its reed bed
in a lake and fashioned into a flute:
how to this day whenever the flute
is played its melancholy song tells
of its yearning for the home it was
separated from so long ago.
“We’ve all been plucked from
that same reed bed,” I said to Rita.
“And our pain is going to continue
as long as we remain separated
from what we’ve lost.
“We may or may not someday
find our way back to that place,” I
Center, Memorial Hospital Pembroke, Community Resource
Building, 2261 N. University
Dr. Call: 954/967-2055. Also,
ballroom dance lessons provided at 11 a.m. $15 for six lessons.
Call: 954/963-8030.
FRIDAY
Fernandina Beach — Alzheimer’s
Support Group, fourth Friday
only. 2:30-4 p.m. Nassau
County Council on Aging.
1367 South 18th St. Call:
904/261-0701.
SATURDAY
Daytona Beach — Meeting of
Volusia County Retired Educators Association, Unit I, District
IV, fourth Saturday only. 11:15
a.m. Stacey’s Restaurant,
Daytona Beach Outlet Mall.
Call: 904/322-7788.
SUNDAY
St. Augustine — Celebrity Chef
Breakfast, second Sunday only,
fundraiser for the St. Johns
County Council on Aging. 9 a.m.1 p.m. St. Johns County Senior
Center. 11 Old Mission Ave.
told her. “But even if we simply
realize what’s important in life and
begin to start searching, that effort
alone will go a long way towards
relieving us of this primal pain.”
Harry Moody, Ph.D., is the cofounder and executive director of
the Brookdale Center on Aging at
Hunter College in New York City.
This text was taken from his latest
book, The Five Stages of the Soul:
Charting the Spiritual Passages That
Shape Our Lives, and is reprinted
with permission.
Medicare and
Medicaid Fraud
continued from page 23
Osceola and Brevard Counties,
407/623-1330); Pam Fico (PSA 8,
Sarasota, Desoto, Charlotte,
Glades, Lee, Hendry, and Collier
Counties, 941/332-4233); Katie
Travis (PSA 10, Broward County,
954/714-3456); Jacqueline Jones
(PSA 11, Dade and Monroe
Counties, 305/670-6500.
is available in both Braille
and on cassette tape for
people with print disabilities.
To order your copy,
call 1-800 /226-6075
ELDER UPDATE
A U G U S T 19 9 8
PAG E
23
MEDICARE/MEDICAID FRAUD
Medicare fraud has become one of the nation’s fastest-growing crimes, according to the FBI and other authorities. In Florida alone,
the tab is estimated at $1 billion annually, roughly a tenth of the state’s total Medicare billings. Who suffers when Medicare is
defrauded? You do — because it’s your tax dollars that end up in the pockets of swindlers, and it is these frauds that have prompted
Congress to propose reductions to Medicare. Here is a recent news story related to Medicare and Medicaid fraud in Florida:
Winning the war on Medicare and Medicaid fraud
to identify wrongdoers and to
Letters and phone calls from
Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, Fort
he Health Care Fraud and Abuse
obtain convictions.
concerned elders to the Operation
Myers and Miami — are currently
Tremarkable
Control Program has shown
In
fiscal
year
1997
alone
—
Restore
Trust
Program
have
resultrecruiting volunteers to provide
progress in rooting
out health care fraud and abuse.
In addition, Health and Human
Services pursued 4,010 civil health
care fraud cases, an increase of 61
percent over 1996.
Medicare and Medicaid fraud
waste and abuse programs have
saved taxpayers more than $20
billion and increased health care
fraud convictions by more than
240 percent. The Administration
will continue to expand its efforts
the first full year of anti-fraud and
abuse funding — nearly $1 billion
was returned to the Medicare Trust
Fund, the largest amount ever.
Health and Human Services (HHS)
also excluded more than 2,700
providers from doing business
with Medicare, Medicaid, and
other federal and state health care
programs in fiscal year 1997 for
engaging in fraud or other professional misconduct.
ed in numerous reports to agencies
positioned to combat health care
fraud, waste, and abuse. Fifty-three
trained volunteers presented Medicare fraud information at senior
centers, community forums, luncheons, and health fairs in Florida.
This month the department
will expand the Operation Restore
Trust Minority education project
to include the disabled. The five
project areas — St. Petersburg,
healthcare fraud outreach and
education to minority and disabled
communities in the fall. Anyone
interested in volunteering as a
Florida Fraud Fighter please contact the Area Agencies on Aging
Operation Restore Trust Liaison in
your area:
Karen Bolin (PSA 5, Pinellas
County, 813/577-5151); Sara Ritzman (PSA 7, Orange, Seminole,
continued on page 22
Widowed Persons Service
By Lois Herron
AARP Florida State President
idowhood for men and women
at any age presents special
W
difficulties, particularly for people
who find themselves living on their
own for the first time in their adult
lives. Widows and widowers may
face changes in housing, family
relationships and unfamiliar financial
and legal matters. They also may
experience profound feelings of
guilt, loneliness, fear and apprehension, anger or resentment and loss
of identity and self esteem.
During this difficult time, AARP
Widowed Persons Service (WPS)
provides a high-quality service offering direct support and information
about bereavement, as well as a
connection to local community
support and assistance for newly
widowed persons and their families.
The program reaches out to
widowed men and women of all
ages, family members and friends,
diverse populations and employers
and organizations that help others
manage their grief.
Recently, a widow in Central
Florida attended a support group
sponsored by Lake County WPS.
The speaker at that meeting was a
mechanic who was invited to help
the recently widowed understand
the care of their automobiles. One
widow learned that the spark plugs
in her car needed to be changed at
various times.
Another mentioned that she had
never pumped gas and always pulled
into the full service stations but they
were getting harder to find. Members
of the group offered to follow her
home and show her how to pump
gas at the first self-service station
they passed. This group has bonded... they are helping each other.
In 13 communities in Florida,
programs offer the newly widowed
and others one-on-one outreach,
support groups (including online
chats), publications and training
materials on bereavement, referrals
to community resources and social
gatherings. Last year, more than
7,700 people were served by these
programs.
AARP Widowed Persons Service
volunteers work closely with community leaders and service organizations
to establish and maintain local AARP
WPS programs. Trained volunteers
who are widowed provide outreach
and support to the newly widowed.
Other volunteers provide leadership
in other areas such as board membership and office management.
For 25 years, AARP Widowed
Persons Service has been widely
recognized in the bereavement
community as a national expert on
grief and death education for older
persons. To celebrate the 25th
anniversary of WPS, a birthday
cake will be part of the AARP Day
planned in Ocala, Oct. 23 at the
City Auditorium. Area residents and
AARP members are invited to help
celebrate this event.
Publications available from
AARP include a booklet written for
recently bereaved men and women
entitled On Being Alone (Stock
#D150; Spanish version Stock
#D13949) and a listing of books
appropriate for adults and children
entitled Bibliography on Grief and
Loss (Stock #D435). A new publication to help employers understand
and respond appropriately to the
effect of grief on employees entitled
When An Employee Loses a Loved
One, It Pays To Take Time To Care
(Stock #D14603) also is available.
A single copy of these publications
may be ordered by sending a postcard to: AARP Fulfillment, 601 E
Street, NW, Washington, DC 20049.
Information about AARP Widowed
Persons Service can be obtained
by calling toll-free 1-800/424-2277
or visiting the Web site at
www.aarp.org.
Lois Herron is the Florida State
President of AARP.
PAG E
24
A U G U S T 19 9 8
ELDER UPDATE
STAGES OF THE SOUL
Hearing that little voice once again
By Harry R. Moody /Special to Elder Update
“T
ime is running out again,”
the little voice whispers.
It’s a sunny July morning on
vacation. Or maybe mid-afternoon
on a lazy weekend. Everyone is
out of the
house. There
are no calls to
return, no people to see. The
day is yours.
You pick
up that novel
you’ve been
dying to read.
Harry R. Moody
But soon you
put it down
again — reading makes you restless. So you try going for a walk,
but that’s not satisfying either.
Something is eating at you inside,
and none of the usual diversions
seem to help.
Back in the living room, the
view out the window is the same
as it was yesterday, and the day
before. You chat with a friend on
the phone for a few minutes and
this passes the time. But when you
hang up there’s silence again.
There’s nothing wrong, really.
Nothing’s pressing. You look
forward to these moments of peace
and quiet all year long. Why then
is it so difficult to let go and enjoy?
Finally you realize what’s
troubling you. It’s that little voice
again, the one that keeps piping up
during the silences and raising the
same litany of disturbing questions.
“Is this all there is?” it asks.
“This home? This mate? This job?
This life?”
Many of us, it turns out, in one
way or another, come to this same
sober realization, that life does
not seem to be giving us what we
want. But what it is we really want,
we can’t exactly say.
In an effort to answer this
question, I widened the circle of
my inquiries and began talking to
adults from many sectors of life.
As it happened, I was already
working with Elderhostel, a nation-
&
Ethics Personal Responsibility
Have you ever seen a little child take a toy apart? They’re not
just being destructive. They’re looking for something. They’re
trying to get to the heart of what makes the universe tick.
al organization devoted to bringing
liberal education to retired people,
and soon I turned the search for
meaning into the centerpiece of
my Elderhostel classes.
In these classes and in my
midlife workshops I now heard
stories from people old and young
who had been leading ordinary
lives and who suddenly found their
worlds disrupted by a spiritual call.
A retired nurse in one of my
Atlanta seminars told me, “I’ve
gotten this inner calling to investigate what’s at the bottom of life.
Under everything. Have you ever
seen a little child take a toy apart?
They’re not just being destructive.
They’re looking for something.
They’re trying to get to the heart
of what makes the universe tick.
That’s what I’m about right now.
I’ve got the urge to understand the
world inside me.”
Or, as a middle-aged technician
named Sven told the group, “I
never believed in anything much.
Until the day my son fell off his
motorcycle and was crushed under
a truck. It was near-fatal, and he
was in the hospital for a year.
During the time of his rehabilitation I started to get the call inside
that I should pray. My son got better, and you bet I kept on praying.”
Not everyone in my workshops
was so forthcoming with their
experiences, and many would
discuss them only in private. For
one older man, the quest for meaning had become a protracted and
somewhat frustrating ordeal.
“I’ve been struggling for more
than 30 years,” he told me after
class one day, almost in hushed
tones. “I search. I pray. Sometimes
I talk to God as if He was standing
there listening to me. It’s exasperating, but I can’t go back anymore.
I’m hooked, you could say. I’ve
got the bug to discover who I am.”
Occasionally the people I came
into contact with talked about
miraculous moments of compassion
and bliss.
Anna, a longtime practitioner
of Transcendental Meditation,
described how several years ago
she had been hiking in the White
Mountains of New Hampshire.
Coming to a trail stop, she took
out her lunch and began to eat.
Suddenly, she noticed two small
deer watching her nearby. She studied these animals with admiration
for several moments, then noticed
that both seemed to be emitting a
kind of shimmering glow.
The longer she stared at them,
the brighter the glow became, and
the more she felt herself slipping
into an excited, disoriented state
of mind. Finally she entered a kind
of ecstacy.
“I was in this state for God
knows how long,” Anna told one of
my spellbound workshop groups.
“Maybe five minutes. Maybe 50.
I’ve never been sure. When I came
to, the deer were gone, and there
was this just unbelievable sense of
peace. I’ve never been the same
person since this happen.”
We grow up touched in one way
or another by spiritual idealism, and
then, frequently, this influence fades
during our twenties or thirties when
we are making our way into the
world. Then one day somewhere in
the later part of adult life this contemplative impulse reemerges.
Precisely when it comes and
what forms it takes depends on a
variety of cultural and environmental factors. From the literally
thousands of people I had spoken
with by now at Brookdale, Elderhostel and midlife workshops
across the country, as well as from
Moving? Address Change? Receiving
Multiple Copies? Please let us know!
We want to cut unnecessary postage
costs. Allow six to eight weeks for your
address to be changed.
Send this label with your corrections in a
stamped envelope to:
Bonni Singer, Database Manager,
The Florida Department of Elder Affairs,
P.O. Box 10118, Tallahassee, FL 32302
Corrections:
__________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Please note: if the U.S. Postal Service
changes your zip code, Elder Update will
automatically make the change. You do
not need to send in a correction.
continued on page 22