X-Message-Number: 646
Subject: CRYONICS - ACS and ALCOR
From:  (Edgar W. Swank)
Date: Sun, 09 Feb 92 15:32:42 PST

I think this thread is cooling down significantly, hence the removal
of "vs."  from the subject.  I want to thank Keith Henson (msg 630)
for his generally conciliatory message.  I especially want to thank
Alcor President Mondragon for posting (msg 632) the official Alcor
position.  It leads me to hope that in the future better cooperation
between ACS, TT, and Alcor may be be a real possibility.  Yes, Mr.
Mondragon, you have gone a long way in addressing my concerns.  I
would prefer to contact you privately over the net at Alcor's net
address:
 
      ALCOR                <>
 
rather than over long distance telephone. Is this OK with you??
 
Message 631 from Steven B. Harris was less conciliatory, but I think
he asks good questions that deserve good answers.  As I've said, I'm
not a board member or officer of either ACS or TT any more.  So I'll
have to try to round up detailed information from authoritative
sources over the next few (I hope) days.  TT President Art Quaife has
internet access & he may choose to respond directly or route material
through me.  The ACS office in Cupertino has a computer & modem but
the personnel are not trained (yet?)  in submitting information
directly into Cryonet.  I've volunteered to act as an ad hoc spokesman
because I have the time (I'm retired), the equipment & enough
familiarity with BBS & Internet operations to get by.
 
> Subject to correction, I will give my impressions of what I've
heard informally.
 
Most of ACS/TT recent suspensions have been not of previously signed
up suspension members but of members relatives (parents). Usually
the decision to attempt suspension was not made until shortly before
death or even after.
 
Until last year, ACS paid TT an "Emergency Responsibility" fee out of
membership dues for suspension members.  Starting last year (roughly)
TT started billing for this separately.  I'm an ER customer & I paid
TT $96.00 for one year of ER service in addition to my ACS dues.  TT
sent me a 2-page letter describing what the ER service and other
services includes.  I won't type the whole thing in, but ER Service
includes:
 
    Maintain the Life Line 24 hour emergency phone notification
    service [connected with our Medic-Alert bracelets]...
 
    Assist in making arrangements for transport of Donor...
 
    Maintain ... equipment and trained personnel in a continuous state
    of readiness...
 
(Art, this is letter file \tt\permann\services.ws2 dated 12/18/90.
You are invited to send me this file, with any updates, for posting
here.  You could post it yourself, but I think it's a wordstar source
file & may need some reformatting before posting.  I volunteer to do
that).
 
ACS will accept suspension members who do not subscribe to TT ER.  In
this interim period, such members have tended to get the benefit of ER
fees paid by others at the cost of an added fee assessed at time of
suspension and a lower priority in the event of the near simultaneous
death of a member who has ER.  This is now in a state of flux & I'm
not sure just what an ACS suspension member without ER gets.
Certainly ACS best efforts to arrange the suspension, but I will have
to await official comment for details.
 
Trans-Times's ER service does NOT include waiting at the bedside of a
terminal hospital or nursing home patient.  They do have such a
service, called Emergency Standby. It is optional and is charged for
separately. It is not cheap! It was designed for use more in
circumstances such as high-risk surgery for a few hours at a time.
More than a few days of continuous standby would not be economical.
I seem to recall (Art: please review for correctness) that
a $500 deposit was required in advance, or an equivalent amount of
Trans-Time stock left on deposit. (I have some stock on deposit).
 
It's my impression that none of the recent suspendees have had paid-up
ER at time of death and that no-one has ever used the Emergency
Standby service.  (Art:  please verify or correct).
 
This is about all I can say pending comments from ACS and Trans-Time
leadership.  I think all cryonics organizations are spread pretty thin
in relation to the job that needs to be done.  It's my hope we can to
some degree coordinate our efforts and share access to our resources
in some equitable and mutually agreeable way in the future.  This
should be of benefit to all concerned.
 
Long life to everyone,
Edgar Swank

--
 (Edgar W. Swank)
SPECTROX SYSTEMS +1.408.252.1005  Silicon Valley, Ca

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