Last Place You Can Still Get Fleeced For Phone Calls: Hospitals
from the not-for-long dept
It used to be well known that hotels would recognize that guests had no other choice than to use the room phone to make phone calls, and thus would have extortionate rates as a way of padding revenue via a captive audience. As mobile phones became more common, the hotels started freaking out, with some even trying to buy mobile phone jammers as well. Others went a different route and figured that if most guests were using mobile phones, only the most desperate would use in-room phones, so they jacked the prices up even higher, knowing the only people who would use them had no other options. However, there is still one place where in-room phones have a captive audience apparently: hospitals. Turns out that hospitals (at least in the UK) like to charge ridiculous rates for patients receiving incoming calls. Of course, with many hospitals now looking to allow mobile phone use as well, it would seem that this little money maker may be going away as well.Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
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maybe its not all bad
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must be a UK thing
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back into the hospital budget huh?
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huh?
but that may have been a lie.
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I have a budget????
As for this thing you called a 'budget???' Can someone tell me what those are....I've never seen one in a hospital...
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maybe i didn't read that well enough
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Cellphones in Hospitals
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Try Making a Phone Call from PRISON
The states contract out the phone service to the highest bidder, who then proceeds to fleece the families of inmates who are only allowed to make collect calls.
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Yes, but then again no...
I did use a porta-payphone once - I think my mobile battery had run down and I didn't have my charger there yet. They wheeled the little trolley over to me and gave me the cable to plug into the wall - when they offered to help me plug it in, I made some smart-arse comment about being perfectly capable of plugging a phone into the wall myself... I'm pretty sure I was the only person on the ward with enough electrical kit that I needed someone to bring me in a 4-way adapter, since there weren't enough plugs for patient use :-)
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Re: Try Making a Phone Call from PRISON
And the bogus excuse CA corrections people give for using the overpriced phone services? It's the only way we can be garunteed to be able to track the conversations in the event of criminal activity. I call bullshit.
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Re: Re: Try Making a Phone Call from PRISON
Tough Titties. I'm sorry, but this has got to be the most rediculous complaint I've ever heard. I know how you can save a ton of money on these phone calls, don't go to prison.
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Re: Cellphones in Hospitals
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Re: I have a budget????
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HIPAA?
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Some Cell phones, but depends on area and equipmen
1 seemed to allow them anywhere (we were in the ER when we asked and they said go ahead), and the rest only ban them in the ER and ICU.
As for interference, cell phones most certainly can. A GSM cell phone clearly emits strong EM pulses, such that you can here them on any amplified speakers. These pulses are certainly going to be picked up by sensors on a patient. Heck, I can screw up a computer monitor if my phone is close enough to it. I have also seen cell phones crash electronic prototypes in a lab setting.
CDMA is better as it doesn't pulse like TDMA and GSM. The spread spectrum design greatly reduces its impact further. I believe GSM is setup in such a way that the TDMA portion can be replaced with CDMA, but the installed base of towers and phones will probably keep that from ever happening.
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Phone Interference
They have debunked several myths about cell phones, including the myth that a spark from a ringing cell phone could set off an explosion while filiing your fuel tank.
In hospitals, it's probably the other way around - shielding and equipment in the buildings will cause more interference to cell phone conversations than the opposite.
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Re: Re: Re: Try Making a Phone Call from PRISON
So before you go off making snide remarks saying "don't go to prison" to save money on prison calls, keep in mind that not every family deserves to get fleeced by the prison phone system.
On the topic of the article itself, I do hope that this price gouging on those with no other options will end soon. It's bad enough that you may not be able to afford the treatment in a hospital, but to have to pay high amounts for calls is just adding insult to injury.
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Actually, the money goes to keep the local private golf club nice and green.
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Cell phones don't cause problems
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Re: Try Making a Phone Call from PRISON
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Re: Re: Re: Try Making a Phone Call from PRISON
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Re: Try Making a Phone Call from PRISON
The only reason I keep my land mine phone is so I can receive these weekly collect calls. So, for just one half hour collect call per week, plus the cost to have a land mine phone, I'm paying over $75.00 per month.
Any suggestions?
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