This Is Why Healthcare Should Be A Public Service

Some services should not be privatized, ever. Healthcare is at the top of that list for many people. And in Milwaukee, there just was a glaring example why it shouldn't be.

On January 15, Milwaukee, like the rest of the nation, was in the clasp of a deadly cold snap. Jolene Waldref, a 49 year old woman, slipped and fell at a busstop at a busy intersection. She called 911 and a crew from Curtis Ambulance, a private ambulance company, responded. When they got to the location of the call, they didn't see Waldref, who was laying on the sidewalk. They didn't see her because they never bothered getting out of their rig. Adding insult to injury, it took two weeks for the truth to come out:

The details of what happened to Jolene Waldref, 49, on Jan. 15 have shifted as a redacted version of her 911 call has been released, as well as surveillance video from the busy intersection where she died.

Milwaukee Fire Department officials and leaders of the private Curtis Ambulance service are facing backlash after they revealed a Curtis crew did not get out of their truck to look for Waldref, who was down on the sidewalk just feet from where they drove past.

As tragic as the incident, the response to it is completely outrageous.

read more