A"Hospice," derived from the word "hospitality," began as an early Western tradition of providing a place of rest for tired or ill travelers (probably on their way to or from pilgrimages). As modern medicine became more refined, the hospital became the impersonal, efficient, and expensive place in which to be very ill, and to ultimately die. Doctors were treated as gods, and family were treated as guests. However, in 1974 the first hospices opened in the U.S. as "homes" where people could die with dignity, still receiving the medical care that kept them reasonably comfortable, and where family, friends, and even pets were welcomed as part of the continuum of life while awaiting the inevitable. Hospice services were also available to those who decided to remain in their own homes-nursing care and palliative medication were (and are) part of the mission of in-home hospice care.

Now hospice may be taking on a new mission: treating patients, either in-house or at home, as persons who deserve every chance to continue life-prolonging treatment. This new development, which many private insurance companies are endorsing and paying for, allows terminally ill patients the opportunity to receive sophisticated treatments that may slow or even halt the progression of disease. This program is termed "open access."

Cost benefit is only one of the positive aspects of this new system, though an important one. Medicare covers palliative care in hospice, but not treatment for the illness. Private insurance companies and individuals are finding that it is cost-effective to pay for treatment that keeps their clients going while Medicare picks up the tab for the usual hospice services and in-home care.

Of course, the most important benefit may not be the money, but the hope that it gives hospice clients that they may yet feel and be less ill, though their prognoses remain the same. It also entices people to join hospice earlier in their illnesses so that the services hospice can provide will have a more comforting, effective way to help all involved and keep patients out of the hospital at end-of-life. Patients may be able to regain more function; families may have strain relieved as caregivers; and everyone will know that everything possible is being done to prolong the patients' constructive lives while making the likely outcome more bearable to all.

Two of the companies offering life-extending treatment are Aetna and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Rhode Island. Two of the hospices involved in this new life-prolonging system are Capital Hospice (Falls Church, VA) and Continuum Hospice Care (part of the hospital system of the same name) in New York. Some companies, such as Dow Chemical, are willing to pay the higher premiums for this new service, deeming it "the right thing to do."

For general information about hospice in your area, check the Web for "hospice services."

For more information, contact your own health insurance company and visit the following Websites:

http://www.cms.hhs.gov/center/hospice.asp
http://www.cdh.org/ClinicalServices.aspx

Additional health-related information for seniors can also be found at:
http://www.seniorresource.com/health.htm

A2. RELIEF FOR HOMEOWNERS? NOT JUST YET

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B. DID YOU KNOW...?

Ringtones to Enjoy
Looking for some unique cellular telephone ringtones? Why not try the U.S. Marine Corps. The Commandant's Own," The United States Marine Drum & Bugle Corps has created MP3 ringtones that are available to the public at no cost. They can be downloaded directly to your computer. The recordings are a wide variety of public domain music. They include Drum Solos, Bugle Calls, and Full Corps renditions. The Full Corps selections feature such tunes as "Pirates of the Caribbean" and "Rock This Town". Get your ring tone at:
http://drumcorps.mbw.usmc.mil/ringtone.html

809 Area Code Scam
The following was provided by ATT as an aid to its customers. The information also applies to other carriers

Be cautious when responding to e-mails or phone calls from the 809, 284 or 876 area codes.

Periodically, e-mails warning of a scam involving calls from the 809 area code circulate. The e-mails contend that there has been fraud associated with unscrupulous pay-per-call operators in that area code. However, the message contains some misinformation, especially the highly exaggerated cost of a phone call to the 809 area code, which is a legitimate area code for the Dominican Republic. Fortunately, this scam is less prevalent in recent years as a result of work done by AT&T to eliminate access to fraudulent pay-per-call operators.

This long distance phone scam causes consumers to inadvertently incur high charges on their phone bills. Consumers usually receive a message telling them to call a phone number with an 809, 284 or 876 area code in order to collect a prize, find out information about a sick relative, etc. The caller assumes the number is a typical three-digit U.S. area code; however, the caller is actually connected to a phone number outside the United States, often in Canada or the Caribbean, and charged international call rates. Unfortunately, consumers don't find out that they have been charged higher international call rates until they receive their bill.

AT&T offers these tips to avoid such scams:

1. Return calls to familiar numbers only.
2. Carefully read your telephone bill.

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1. Arthritis Month
Each year the month of May is observed as National Arthritis Month, following a 1972 Presidential Proclamation of the observance. This event provides an official nationwide observance to increase visibility of the seriousness of arthritis. In 2008 the Arthritis Foundation is celebrating 60 years of service toward its mission. The Arthritis Foundation is the nation's leading organization dedicated to ending the pain, disability and devastation of arthritis. While great strides have been made in the treatment and understanding of arthritis, the disease remains the most common form of disability in the U.S. To learn more and help support this worthy cause visit
http://www.arthritis.org/

2. Asian Pacific American (APA) Heritage Month
May is APA) Heritage Month is a celebration of Asians and Pacific Islanders in the United States. First proclaimed by the President in 1990. May was chosen to commemorate the immigration of the first Japanese to the United States on May 7, 1843, and to mark the anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad on May 10, 1869. The majority of the workers who laid the tracks were Chinese immigrants. APA Heritage Month is celebrated with community festivals, government-sponsored activities, and educational activities for students. This year's theme is "Lighting the Past, Present, and Future". To learn more about this important cultural group visit the Library of Congress site at http://www.loc.gov/topics/asianpacific/

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KnowItAlz is a single source for the caregivers and loved ones with an emphasis on the lighter side of living with Alzheimer's Disease. Though there are many excellent resources currently available on the topic of Alzheimer's Disease, KnowItAlz provides a user-friendly resource with the focus on the caregiver. Their philosophy is simple...you have to find the humor in life. Their mission is to build a community of caregivers who are looking for the bright side of a very dark disease. They provide information, resources, and connections to other caregivers, and most importantly a few laughs.
Visit them at http://www.KnowItAlz.com

Are you looking to compare prices and products before you buy? Then you might want to check out these comparisons shopping web sites.

1. BizRate.com
2. Shopzilla.com
3. DealTime.com

1. Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things.
2. One tequila, two tequila, three tequila, floor.....
3. I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman,"where's the self-help section?"
   She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose.
4. Is there another word for synonym?
5. Where do forest rangers go to "get away from it all?"

1. "Poor Faulkner. Does he really think big emotions come from big words?"
   Ernest Hemingway (about William Faulkner)
2. "Thank you for sending me a copy of your book; I'll waste no time reading it." Moses Hadas
3. "He can compress the most words into the smallest idea of any man I know." Abraham Lincoln
4. "I've had a perfectly wonderful evening. But this wasn't it." Groucho Marx
   

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