Narcisse raises concerns about disabled members; Jimenez on the DME benefit

I'm always concerned of the disabled population.

So you see a trend on that, how they, because with calling,

I'm not going to put anyone out there, but when they're calling for transportation, sometimes, you know, the delay and elevators or some cannot do public transportation.

So all those things, have you seen?

That people missing apartment due to those kind of difficulties?

Which I'm going to, I'll start and then turn to Jonathan because he, it was Jonathan's idea a year or two ago to make a big expansion within the NYC Care program to make sure that people with disability can always get the DME that they need.

So actually, Jonathan, do you want to share?

This really is your brainchild, so I want to give you.

Yeah, well, we saw that there was a gap.

And folks, because it's not NYC Care, it wasn't health insurance, it was challenging to find durable medical equipment.

We created it.

a new benefit so that if you needed a wheelchair, if you needed a cane, a walker, any number of equipment that you need to live a

dignified life, a healthy life, now your primary care provider or other specialty care provider can order it online.

At their desk and it's delivered to your home.

So that certainly contributed a great deal to folks being able to get around and get to their appointments.

And just if I could say one more thing there, because I think it's a really emblematic and perfect example of NYC Care is, we talked about the data, it's been incredibly impactful for our patients, for our city,

But it's a special program, too.

Other cities don't have programs like this.

So when other jurisdictions have reached out to us, as I shared earlier with you, they're blown away by the impact that we're able to have with this program.

And as an example, I mean, if you're somebody that's uninsured in another city and you need a wheelchair, it's very difficult, almost impossible to get the care that...

The services and the care that you need.

Whereas here, we're going to enroll you in a program by calling one number.

You're going to see a doctor within two weeks, and you have full access to DME.

It's just a foundationally different experience than everybody else in so many other jurisdictions across the country, which is why we believe so strongly in this program.

I appreciate it, too.

I used to own a DME.

company.

So I know sometimes when you don't have insurance, you cannot pay the special wheelchairs.

So special wheelchairs can be $20,000, $25,000.

So it can be

very, I mean, difficult, and some of them Medicaid's not covering them.

So it can be.

Hectic for families that are dealing with that.

It can be a lot of pressure.