Importance

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Abstract

A supervisory system and method automatically tracks and reports the status, e.g., current address, employer, telephone number, etc., of a group of enrollees, and automatically collects a fee for such service. Each enrollee 'reports in' to a host CPU of the system in accordance with a specific contact schedule, e.g., once a month, through a fee-based telephone network that automatically charges a prescribed toll fee to the originating telephone number whenever telephone contact remains established for more than a preamble time period. The host CPU, using individual calling line identification (ICLID) information included in the incoming telephone call, identifies the telephone number of the incoming call and determines if it belongs to an enrollee of the system. If not, the incoming call is disconnected before the preamble time period expires, thereby preventing the incoming caller from being charged the toll fee. Further, if a given enrollee attempts to report in more than once during the same reporting period, the incoming call is disconnected before the preamble time period expires, thereby preventing the incoming caller from being charged the toll fee more than once for a given reporting period. When valid telephone contact is established, the identify of the caller is verified to make sure it is an enrollee, and the verified enrollee then updates the status information, if needed. Reports are generated to selectively indicate which enrollees have or have not reported during the prescribed reporting period, and any change in their status.

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First Claim