Bronx Assemblywoman Karines Reyes (goes without saying she’s a Democrat) was an RN and active union member before she was elected to the New York legislature in 2018. While she left full time nursing to assume her seat in the Assembly from the 87th district, she remained in a per diem status. As this crisis has unfolded, with the epicenter in New York City, she began hearing from her former colleagues at Montefiore Hospital about staffing shortages she knew what she had to do:
“They were so short. Everyone was sick,” Reyes said of the medical staff at Montefiore. “It would behoove me to answer the call for my community.”
As the legislative session was wrapping up, she began working weekend shifts to help cover those staffing shortages, while driving back to Albany to cast her votes. Now that the session is over she has taken on a full time schedule, working primarily with covid-19 patients. I first heard about this story from an interview she did with the public radio program Capitol Pressroom. I encourage everyone to listen. She admits to the fear for her personal safety she feels. Even more, the depth of her understanding of this crisis, from both an on-the-ground perspective and the perspective of an elected official, and her compassion for her fellow human beings comes across loud and clear.
And this isn’t the first time Assemblywoman Reyes has answered the call to service. Before she was an RN, she went to Haiti to assist with the recovery from the 2010 earthquake that devastated the island. As an RN, she went to Puerto Rico to help that island in the wake of Hurricane Maria in 2017.
While her service on the frontlines of this crisis deserves applause, it also positions her well to push back in the Assembly against the Medicaid cuts Gov. Andrew Cuomo was able to get as part of the recently passed state budget.
“The mortality rate in The Bronx is through the roof because of poor health outcomes,” Reyes explained.
“People who recover from COVID-19 will need long-term care… We cannot take on the burden of the Medicaid cuts,” she went on.
“We can’t straddle the human costs.”
The NY Post article also mentions that Reyes is considering a bid to become leader of the Bronx Democratic Party. She’s only 36 years old. Along with being a hero who is voluntarily putting her safety at risk, I see a rising star in Democratic politics.