Councilman Eric Gioia (D-Queens), Chairman of the Council Committee on Oversight and Investigations, along with Bhairavi Desai, Executive Director of the Taxi Workers Alliance, released over the weekend the findings of a survey Gioia conducted which found that taxi drivers have a 52% uninsurance rate- more than twice as high as the average New Yorker.
The survey also found that nearly 37% of taxi drivers with children had no health insurance. The one-year Gioia study of 314 cab drivers took place between 2008 and 2009. Gioia proposed a three-point plan to help New York City’s 25,000 driver’s live healthier lives.
“Taxi drivers are the invisible face of New York’s transit- and my study found they are also potentially among the most unhealthy,” said Councilman Gioia. “Every day, thousands of taxi drivers go to work without health insurance, despite working a stressful and unhealthy job. Taxi drivers are essentially a part of our public transportation system – making the city run – and yet unlike public employees, they have no guarantee of health care. We need to do more.”
“Drivers suffer 60- to 70-hour back-breaking work weeks and are vulnerable to injury from assaults and accidents at a higher rate than any other workforce. It’s unconscionable that workers whose working conditions directly lead to deteriorating health are the very ones who remain uninsured at a higher rate,” said Bhairavi Desai, Executive Director of the New York City Taxi Workers Alliance
According to the results of a survey by Councilman Gioia, 52% of the more than 300 taxi drivers interviewed had no health insurance, more than twice the percentage citywide. Gioia’s study also found:
· Of those taxi drivers with health insurance, 24% were covered by their spouse–not because they had their own health plan.
· The estimated cost of uncompensated care for taxi drivers without insurance is approximately $13 million per year.
· 45% of taxi drivers who visited the hospital in the past year had no health insurance.
· 44% of taxi drivers who take prescription medication have no health insurance.
· Of taxi drivers surveyed who had both a doctor’s visit and a stay in the hospital in the last year—a group particularly in need of insurance and prescription drugs—41% were without insurance.
In order to help taxi drivers live healthier lives, Gioia proposed a three point plan to help fix the chronic uninsurance and health issues which taxi drivers face:
· Conduct On-site Enrollment For Taxi Drivers: The city should work to ensure that every driver who qualifies for public health insurance, including Medicare, Medicaid and Family Health Plus, is enrolled by conducting on-site healthcare enrollment at locations taxi drivers congregate. The TLC and Department of Health and Mental Hygiene should also team up to do regular health surveys of drivers to help identify the short- and long-term health effects of driving a taxi in New York City.
· Driver Insurance: If current comprehensive healthcare reform efforts in Congress fail to create a way to cover taxi drivers and similar workers who do not have insurance, the City should explore an industry-sponsored health fund for taxi drivers.
· Provide On-Site Access to Health Services: The City and the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey should partner with New York’s public and private hospitals to provide on-site preventative and primary care services at sites where taxi drivers congregate, like JFK and LaGuardia airports, along with providing small exercise facilities for taxi drivers at areas which can support them.
Studies have found that driving a taxi can be very a very unhealthy profession. A report by the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) found that taxi drivers face many health-related issues, including little access to quality health care, few chances to eat healthy meals, and multiple chronic health issues. The UCLA study, which surveyed 302 Los Angeles cab drivers, found:
· 49% reported that they had back pain severe enough to interfere with daily activities;
· 40% had leg problems, including swollen legs and “left leg limp”; and
· 34% reported eye problems.
“Left leg limp” is a syndrome that, according to UCLA, appears to be caused by infrequent use of the left leg, since the right is used for driving and braking while the left maintains little use during the day. In total, more than half those surveyed had medically diagnosed back and leg problems. More than half of those taxi drivers surveyed in Los Angeles were found to be suffering from severe or extremely severe stress during their day because of the conditions they faced, leading to heart attacks and other heart ailments. Long hours in traffic also lead to lung diseases like asthma. Additionally, due to long hours with lack of access to bathrooms, drivers often develop bladder disorders.
Jose Batallei, who has been driving for 22 years, has health insurance through his wife. He said that in addition to improved health insurance, he also expressed his wish to remove the partitions between the front seats that many taxis have, as they can obstruct the view of the rear view mirror and can cause accidents.
Taxi drivers get nothing extra to have a better and healthy life. When we work long (11-12) hours our life gets unballanced! Can any cab driver survive with 8 hours of work and buy food for the family? These days every driver working 6-7 days (70+ hrs/week)! Can we slow down, and get a happy and healthy ballanced life?
Well we can thank the Democrats in the state senate. They passed a 50 cent surcharge for taxi drivers to collect to help pay for the MTA’s workers health insurance….Where’s the justice???
Perhaps they should raise the MTA tolls some more to pay for taxi drivers insurance?..
This is the truth about health care as told from an insurance insider who has deserted his industry because he has a conscience. Everyone must see this. Tell others
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/07312009/watch.html
——————————————————————————–
Every cab driver and passenger should see this video!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=boGWcE0PgYk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kev49yCZPH4&feature=related
Hi,
Everybody, I have to coduct a survey that how much stress a driver face on NYC streets and what are the factors, can you identify some questions that I can put in questioner. Make sure this survey is only the part of graduate degree.
Regards:
Tahir, good idea UR stress questionnaire. Ask if drivers stressed by lights {meter, computer screen, card system, and other ‘cockpit-dashboard’ lights in eyes, before eyes see NYC street & traffic light stress & million lights of other vehicles & NYC life at night. Stress caused by these driver ‘cockpit’ lights would be unconscious & subliminal to driver body system, without driver aware of it. Airplane pilot cockpit lights must be special colors seen thru special goggles – so that pilot’s senses remain keenly alert. Ask RIDERS if they feel stress seeing the pin-point credit card slider lights in their eyes during the whole trip? Ask RIDERS if they know these pin-point lights involve a subliminal stress riders may not be aware they are experiencing. Good work! I was looking at the inside of the Toyota Camry taxi the other day. With all the dash-board and front-seat driver lights just from the vehicle, to add the card systems, monitors, meter lights – it looked like it was getting ready to speed down the runway for take-off. Surely all these unnecessary lights should not be staring a driver in the face for 12 hours.
Thanks :Rootie Kazootie
what you think about TLC, Brokers, Police
917-7909514
What I think about TLC? With every breath they take, they show the opinion that the NYC cab driver is, as one comment said, a 5th class citizen. The TLC precious Bloomberg appointee Yassky said there are 6 factors to consider in the NYC cab of the future, and awaits the Dec/Jan contest outcome. The six factors do not include cost and gas efficiency ROFLMAO. We know the cabbies support the entire multibillion dollar NYC cab business, with money taken from the cabbies’ earnins. Thus, there is no one else who is going to pay for the 6-factor new NYC cab of the future BUT THE CABBIE, who pays for everything. Yet, ‘precious’ lists 6 factors (but leaves out cost and gas efficiency!). Doesn’t that tell you that the cabbies’ pocketbook is going to be raided yet again? Again, ROFLMAO. Precious Yassky
Dear Tahir: What I think? Put ad in paper asking new Black Pampers movement to call your precious number 917-790-9514 and give their opinions of: police driving NYC yellow cabs, and police over-ticketing NYC yellow cabs. ROFLMAO.
Hay: Rootie Kazootie
Can You spare few minutes for me, just give me a call. I need your help to complete this research paper. Or leave your number , I will call you.
No one-on-one’s, Tahir. Presently I’m consumed with calling attention to Precious Yassky’s apparent refusal to seek COST-EFFICIENT & fuel efficient vehicle, bids coming in Dec/Jan. Six factors to consider, says Precious Yassky. Next it will be Harrier Jump Taxis paid for out of cabbies’ earnings, as if there is no end to cabbies’ ability to give more and more of their earning up. The more pricey the chosen “quintessential” cab, the more private owners will go out of business. All the salvage parts will immediately be purchased from the salvage yards by the rich fleet garages, plus their own salvage parts from their accident vehicles. A private owner cannot compete, AND will be lucky not to be a source for the taxi fleets spare parts.