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Our experts independently research and recommend products we believe provide value in the lives of our readers. We’ve spent collectively more than 1,700 hours conducting in-depth research on medical alert systems. To make our picks, here’s what we did:
- Engaged in ongoing independent research
- Consulted with geriatricians and adult caregivers
- Mystery shopped the brands
- Surveyed medical alert system users
- Tested various medical alert systems
- Interviewed experts in the field
- Read hundreds of verified customer reviews from trusted third parties such as Better Business Bureau and Consumer Reports
Rescue Alert Overview
Rescue Alert was developed by Mytrex, a leader in the medical alert industry, which is based in South Jordan, Utah. The devices and accessories (such as a lockbox and a fall detection pendant) can be rented for a monthly fee.
The company manufactures its own products, according to the customer service rep we spoke to, and is focused on the devices working properly to fully protect customers. In fact, the Rescue Alert system performs monthly test calls to subscribers to ensure devices are functioning the way they should.
Though the Rescue Alert website does not provide a lot of details on its products, calls to the customer service line connected usto very knowledgeable, helpful representatives who gave us all the details we asked for.
How to Sign Up
You can sign up to rent or buy the Rescue Alert system online or over the phone, and the equipment will be shipped to you at no cost.
Installation Process
The Rescue Alert system products come with a step-by-step instruction sheet for setup. As soon as you connect the devices, a dispatcher at the Rescue Alert response center will do a test call with you to make sure the device is working properly.
Rescue Alert Options
Rescue Alert offers two base units—one that uses a telephone landline and another that works using cellular service. These units are sleek and white, about the size of a hardcover book, and are best placed in a central, highly trafficked location in the house, such as a kitchen counter.
Along with the home base units, you get a pendant with a call button to wear around your neck, or if you prefer, a wristband with a call button (people with smaller wrists do better with the Velcro version, according to the customer service rep).
If you need help within 600 feet of the base unit (if, for instance, you’re on a porch or at the mailbox), you press the button on the pendant or wristband and the powerful two-way microphone/speaker on the home base unit will activate. Within seconds, a dispatcher at the response center will come on to ask if you need help.
Note that you can provide the Rescue Alert system with a list of people you would like to be alerted in case of an emergency—a neighbor, family member or friend—in any order you wish.
A big plus: The Rescue Alert landline and cellular base units run their own diagnostics to make sure that the internal batteries are strong and the telephone line is functioning properly.
