Raul replayed all the faces of people he drove on March 14. He thinks he knows who infected him.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

David Fahrenthold Retweeted

"Raul replayed all the faces of people he drove on Saturday, March 14. He thinks he knows who infected him. The man said he tested positive for covid-19. He wanted to get to the hospital. He coughed. Raul slumped in his seat."

Always read
@byHeatherLong
:

Link to tweet

Economy

A New York City taxi driver kept working to pay bills. Now he and his family are sick

Taxi drivers are on the front lines of taking covid-19 patients to hospitals. As cabbies get ill, they can’t pay their bills, including the hefty fees to keep their taxis.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-apps/imrs.php?src=

Raul Romero is a taxi driver from the Bronx. He contracted the coronavirus while driving other sick people to the hospital. Both he and his wife are now sick. (Romero family photo)

By Heather Long
April 4, 2020 at 6:00 a.m. EDT

Raul Romero thought he would be fine as long as he wore a mask in his taxi.

He read all the notices from New York City’s Taxi and Limousine Commission. Taxis are “essential services,” they said, and drivers can “go about their daily lives” with a few extra precautions. His daughter bought him Lysol, gloves and a mask. But mostly Raul thought of all his bills — $1,100 rent, $440 car and liability insurance, $320 taxi dispatch fee, $150 monthly parking, $120 cellphone bill, $60 Internet bill. Health insurance. Groceries. How could he stay home?

“This is my job. We depend on it,” Raul told Sandra, his wife of 32 years.

Now he’s sick. His wife’s sick. His older daughter and son-in-law are sick. Raul can’t work. And there wasn’t enough money for April rent.

{snip}

Heather Long
Heather Long is an economics correspondent. Before joining The Washington Post, she was a senior economics reporter at CNN and a columnist and deputy editor at the Patriot-News in Harrisburg, Pa. She also worked at an investment firm in London. Follow https://twitter.com/byHeatherLong

[MontanaMama]

1. This article was so hard to read.

I could feel the fear and despair of Raul Romero and his family. This is happening to millions.

[appalachiablue]

2. K/R So tragic, what a time. Thanks for posting.