NEW YORK, NY — These bums are costing you a fortune.
Ricky Alardo, a homeless alcoholic nicknamed Ricky Ricardo, swigs cheap vodka by day at his favorite corner in Washington Heights, then calls an ambulance to chauffeur him to the hospital for a free meal and a warm place to sleep, courtesy of taxpayers who fund his Medicaid benefits.
Homeless Use Hospitals as Hotels on Your Tab
NEW YORK, NY — These bums are costing you a fortune.
Ricky Alardo, a homeless alcoholic nicknamed Ricky Ricardo, swigs cheap vodka by day at his favorite corner in Washington Heights, then calls an ambulance to chauffeur him to the hospital for a free meal and a warm place to sleep, courtesy of taxpayers who fund his Medicaid benefits.
For a chronic caller like Alardo — who phones 911 four or five times a week — the annual medical bill can be as high as $300,000. Over 13 years, the length of time he has been abusing the emergency room, he has cost the medical system an estimated $3.9 million.
In Midtown, another bum, Robert, has faked emergencies to get food and shelter in ERs about 40 or 50 times in the past three years — and taxpayers pick up his tab, too.
Ricky and Robert are among the dozens of “frequent fliers” who clog the 911 system, tie up city ambulances, crowd emergency rooms and burn through Medicaid money.
An ambulance ride alone can run as much as $800, and an ER visit can cost, conservatively, $400 a pop, according to estimates from medical experts.
City officials don’t track frequent fliers or the costs associated with their transport and hospital care, but anecdotal numbers from ER and EMS workers suggest there are dozens throughout the city.
“We have a system that is extremely dysfunctional. We have no place to put these people,” an EMS medic said.
A paramedic working downtown said some frequent fliers think they’ll get faster treatment if they arrive at an ER by ambulance, rather than walk in.
“They know what to say to our call takers,” he said.
Or they’ll tell a bystander, “Oh, I have chest pains,” the medic said.
Alardo, 53, phones 911 so regularly, medics know which calls are likely his.
“When Ricky passes on, I’ll probably even go to his funeral,” said one medic who works in Washington Heights. “I’ve seen him almost every day for the last 13 years.”
An inebriated Alardo lauded the medics last week, saying they “treat me like a king.”
me myself and i
I love it…
I should do a whole piece about how medicaid food stamps and section 8 makes us… well at least some of us. home owners at a minimum, and millioneers at a… ok just look at montgomery and kingston. or how about the parking lot on union between schencty and utica.. yeh the one who’s spots cost 500 percent more then the avg rent on that block…
Now I understand why
These Welfare Foodstamp and Medicade consumers who instead of working they dominate the City roads with their Luxury Nissan Maximas (With N.C. Plates) and speed swerve around like idiots not letting anyone else drive normal.
-I guess its cheaper than paying the Emergency Rooms.
Have pitty
I don’t blame these guys.
in order to get foodstamps you must be black (or hispanic)
-When applying, you need to pass through around 10 City agents (downstairs and upstairs), all of them black (and Hispanic) who only want to give foodstamps to their fellow blacks.
Foodstamps was made for them and is guarded for them.
These guys who are white and cant get foodstamps, have no choice and need the emergency room for food!
Bereishis
Interesting question, but let me ask my fellow Crown Hights frum friends: if you were to know a homeless Yid, what would you do for him? What if this yid were frum? Don’t be shy, you can be anonymous ;-)
Menachem
“in order to get foodstamps you must be black (or hispanic)”
Huh? I know a number of white Lubavitchers who seem to have no problem receiving foodstamps — along with section 8, unemployment, medicaid, headstart, Earned Income Credits, and every other form of welfare.
Mordechai M
Bereishis raises a very good point. What are we doing to make sure that any of our fellow Yidden have a roof over their head, and food in their stomach? I am talking about more than giving tzedaka to the many worthwhile organizations that are out there. I talking about situations where you know someone who is out on the street, or who has a roof over their head, but not enough to eat. We get wrapped up in school fees, and expenses of that ilk, but what about the fellow shuffling along out of shul, having huddled and shukkeled in the back corner, and then wandered off to find somewhere to sleep for the night.
To: Have Pity
I don’t know where you get your info from, but I’m sure that wherever it’s from, is made up. My husband and I have foodstamps, medicaid and WIC, just because we don’t make enough money – we even had to move into my parents house. We are well respected in the community, it’s just the we don’t have the best of mazal. We work hard,but it takes time to be able to have enough money, especially renting a house, having a proper insurance and paying at least $200 a month for formula, diapers and baby food alone. I really suggest that you think before you speak. It would stand you in good stead.
SMH
Only when they’re sucking up your money do you care what they are doing in their lives. That’s why America is so messed up. If some one cared from the beginning they wouldn’t be in this position. It should be prevention not procedures. These guys are just following the rules america doled out. Instead it’s get drunk, then get fixed.
Have Pitty
To Menachem
your right.
I was just writing my own experience that i was turned down for no reason.
Maybe it was only me.
(Although I was the only white person in this building located in an all white neighberhood)
Nothing New
there is nothing new here. There have always been people who need and are worthy and appreciative of assistance. And there have always been people abusing the system, and taking what they do not deserve.
to To: Have Pity wrote:
$200. a month for formula and baby food??? That’s what the WIC is for. I hope that you don’t expect to live in the style to which you would like to become accustomed while you are doing this i.e. weekly manicures and brand new GAP only clothing for the kids, etc. The constant battle to “keep up” is bringing us all down. Because, after all, we have to be a respectable family….
god-s right hand man
It isn’t a new story there are people that aren’t shomer shabbos, eat treif, smoke, abuse alcohol, etc.
who picks up the tab ?
average life span is higher than ever
medical expenses as proportion of spending higher than ever
financial crimes madoff made it a higher number than it had to be
so what can joe shmoe do
peace at what cost is also an issue
everything isn’t black and white