No Insurance
Aysar, a 40-year-old from Pakistan, drove for a food delivery service for the last four years. When Covid-19 hit, there was a severe salary cut from the staff as well as many staff members were let go. On a busy Friday evening, Aysar ended his shift and was on the way home when the team called him, desperate for help. They asked him to make one more delivery. Aysar agreed, even though he would not be paid for it. When he finished the delivery, he was on the way back to the office and a woman walked out in front of him in the street. He was unable to swerve in time and so he dropped the bike to stop it. The metal bars on the bike fell on his leg and fractured it in three places.
The woman fled the scene, and a security guard nearby called an ambulance. The ambulance arrived but couldn’t transport Aysar without insurance. The owner of Aysar’s food delivery company had recently cut their road traffic accidents insurance to save money. The ambulance dropped Aysar at a nearby clinic instead of their hospital, but they refused to do the surgery because he did not have insurance that covered it. The clinic told him to go to another hospital across town.
With a fractured leg, Aysar got into a taxi to go across the city. The hospital said it would accept him only if he signed a guarantee that he would pay for the surgery bill. Aysar struggled in English and did not fully understand what they were telling him. He refused to sign the waiver because he knew that he could not afford the surgery, so he sat overnight in the hospital.
The next day his manager, Michael, got a message about what happened and went to talk to human resources to find a resolution. HR said the only option was to get the bill and submit a claim, but there was no confirmation that the surgery would be paid for. Michael asked the owner if he would sign the waiver for Aysar, but he refused. The hospital said they would do the surgery, and Aysar agreed after Michael convinced him he would not be able to work again without it and thus not be able to provide for his family in Pakistan.
A couple days later when it’s time for Aysar to be discharged, the hospital refused until the 30,000 AED payment was made. Aysar ended up staying in the hospital an extra day, causing the bill to increase, because he did not have a fraction of the amount to pay the bill. After Michael ran all over the hospital talking to different people, they allowed him to sign on Aysar’s behalf. If the company failed to pay for the surgery or if Aysar left the country then Michael would be responsible for the bill.
“No one has ever done anything like this before for me,” Aysar told him. “I’ll never forget the kindness you showed me when no one else would.” Michael told him that it was not his own kindness, but Jesus who changed his heart to want to love his neighbors, and employees as himself.
Prayer Requests
Pray for the church to provide for the needs of the city when no one else will.
Pray for the situation with Aysar to be resolved and for him and other drivers to come to know Jesus.