Medical Pickup
Recently, I picked up an older woman, who was blind and in a wheelchair. I helped her into the car and put the wheelchair in the trunk. I was taking her to a CT scanning facility. She said that her husband was supposed to meet her there. When we got there, he was stuck in traffic and was still 30 minutes away.
The office she was going to was on the second floor and there was an elevator. She called the place she had the appointment with, but they said they would not come out and get her.
So, I had to park and get her chair out, help her out and into the chair, and then push her to the office. It is not that I minded doing this, but legally I put myself at risk.
This is an important issue for both society and rideshare drivers. I usually have several pickups to and from hospitals every week. Usually, it is something minor or even hospital staff, but sometimes they will put people in your car that should not be released or should be transported in a more professional manner.
Most drivers are happy to assist people in need, but there is a line where it becomes dangerous both physically and legally for the driver. Even lifting a wheelchair and putting fitting it into my trunk can be a challenge, especially if the driver is small, has a bad back, etc.
Many of these rides originate through services that Uber (Uber Health) and Lyft (Lyft Pass for Healthcare) provide to healthcare providers. There should be a way to notify drivers of these trips and allow them to opt-out of accepting them. They could also pay drivers more to accept those rides and provide training and insurance to cover that.
But Uber and Lyft are not interested in that. They just want the rides and then to push the hardship onto the drivers. And that will not change until we have a union or something of that nature.
