We asked our members to tell us about the impact of policies that discourage people from continuing to volunteer as drivers. This is some of what we learned.
Volunteers have had to pay higher car insurance fees based on giving medical rides because insurance companies relate this to the same policy as Uber or Lyft giving rides. Even though one is a volunteer activity and one is a business. Some people have opted out of volunteering because of this.
Anoka County RSVP
We had an older couple who lived out of town 5 miles and the wife did not drive. the husband became unable to drive, their only way to get to appointments or to run errands such as groceries or prescriptions was to rely on our volunteer drivers.
Atwater Area Help for Seniors
We get numerous folks in Mankato, Hutchinson, Madelia and other locations throughout southern MN to medical appointments that they would otherwise not be able to get to.
Brown County Heartland Express
A couple in their 80’s continues to live in the home they love in the Highland Park neighborhood of St. Paul. They both have told us that without our volunteer drivers taking them to medical appointments, on errands and to social outings, they would not be able to stay at home. Their children work full time and are not able to help during the day when transportation is needed most. Both of them need the extra assistance that our volunteers provide and other ride services do not.
Highland Block Nurse Program
We are having trouble recruiting new volunteers because the insurance companies tell them that they need extra coverage if they drive for us, even on a voluntary basis. Most of our volunteers are seniors and cannot afford to increase their insurance premiums. They end up finding other volunteer opportunities and that means that fewer of our clients have access to free rides to medical appointments, the grocery store, pharmacy, etc. We have greatly reduced the number of volunteer drivers and therefore the number of rides we offer over the last three years. This portion of our program is down about 75 percent since 2016.
Keystone Community Services
We had a volunteer driver a few years ago that was scheduled to pick up a passenger and went to the door and saw her laying on the floor. He called 911 and the lady ended up being okay. We also have had many dialysis patients that the volunteers become emotionally attached to and will attend their funerals when they pass.