Life Alert: A Medical Alert Company

Life Alert is a national leader in the medical alert industry and claims to have saved over half a million lives since 2008. The company launched back in 1987 and has been at the forefront of innovation in senior safety ever since, creating one of the most popular medical alert systems in the United States.

About Life Alert

Life Alert has been in business since the late 1980s and has established itself as one of the country’s leading providers of emergency response and medical alert products.

It claims to take over 2 million calls a year and calculates that it saves a life every 11 minutes, with these claims seemingly based on the rate at which it receives and responds to emergency calls. It also claims to have over 200% more employees than any other traditional security company.

Life Alert is clearly proud of the work that it does and continues to do, and it’s easy to see why.

Life Alert Medical Alert Products and Other Systems

The Life Alert medical alert system consists of a main unit and an emergency pendant. It's a simple system but it works, and it's basically the same foundation (albeit with many updates) on which the company was founded. 

There are a few key benefits and features of this medical alert system:

The Pendant

  • A fully waterproof accessory
  • Operates at a range of 800 feet
  • Can be worn around the neck or the wrist
  • No batteries needed, so there’s no need to worry about battery life
  • Provides 24/7 emergency protection

The Main Unit

  • Choose from a cellular unit or a mobile unit
  • Comes with a backup battery
  • Monitored 24/7 by US-based centers

There is also a wall-mounted Help button, which is designed for the bath or shower and does not require a phone line or electrical unit. It's a completely waterproof big red button that you can press if you fall or suffer from an emergency episode of any kind. You will be connected to an emergency line and can get the help that you need quickly.

Personal Protection at Home is another service offered by Life Alert, and it is very useful for people who live alone and are worried about burglaries. Simply press the button, communicate your concerns to the emergency response line, and they can listen for criminal activity in your home, contact the authorities, and even trigger a loud noise to scare criminals away.

Monthly Cost of the Life Alert Medical Alert System

You can get the medical alert system shipped to your home completely free of charge, but you will need to pay a setup cost and activation fee, and this can vary from around $100 to $200, depending on the package chosen.

The monthly cost also varies, usually from around $50 to $90 per month. If you are considering a Life Alert medical alert system for yourself or a loved one, contact the company today to discuss your options. Members are usually very happy with the service provided and Life Alert also has decent customer support.

Other Information

The phrase, “I’ve fallen, and I can’t get up!” became very well known throughout the 80s and 90s and is instantly recognizable to the majority of Americans who lived through these decades. The phrase was used during a commercial for LifeCall, a medical alert device, and it became so widespread that it featured on merchandise and was referenced on countless TV shows and songs.

LifeCall eventually went out of business and Life Alert stepped in to trademark the phrase. Initially, the company trademarked a similar phrase, “Help, I’ve fallen and can’t get up!” before licensing the use of the original phrase in later years.

It’s why you can now see this tagline used throughout the Life Alert website, as well as its promotional materials.