TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Bessie Kelly has had three brain surgeries and is currently fighting a brain tumor that requires frequent check ups at her doctors offices. But lately, she says her government-funded rides have failed to pick her up, or bring her home in a timely manner.

Kelly turned to Better Call Behnken for help after waiting up to three hours in the hot sun on multiple occasions for a ride home.

“I don’t have a choice,” Kelly said. “I have to sit out there and wait. Sometimes I can manage to find a tree with some shade but it’s so hot and humid you know, I get in the car when they come. I’m drenched.”

“If you go inside, they’re not going to call you and they’re not going to come inside to check on you to see if you are there. So if you’re not there when they come, you’re out of luck.”

Kelly’s rides are covered under her Medicare/Medicaid insurance and provided by Atlanta-based Modivcare, which is paid millions to supply the rides to Floridians. Kelly’s call isn’t the first to Better Call Behnken after missed Modivcare rides. In June, a New Port Richey woman complained of waiting for hours for a wheelchair-accessible van that never came until Investigator Shannon Behnken reached out on her behalf.

Kelly’s daughter, Rhonda Kelly, tells Behnken she is fighting for answers for not just her mother, but all who depend on rides through this program. Rhonda Kelly says she has seen several other residents in her mother’s building sitting outside, waiting on rides for long periods of time.

“No one wants to see their parent or any loved one in that situation,” Rhonda Kelly said. “It’s not good. Something is wrong. The system is broken. So they need to tell customers and these recipients what’s going on, how you’re fixing it, and don’t just push us to the curb.”

Better Call Behnken received this emailed statement from Modivcare:

“Modivcare’s overarching mission is to improve access to care for those in need and we understand that non-emergency medical transportation (NEMT) is a vital service for safe, reliable transportation. We have a wide network of transportation professionals and while rideshare services are not used in every instance; we do utilize their services to meet member needs. We are reaching out to the member to help resolve this issue and look forward to continually improving our service experience for our members.”

If you have had issues with rides through Modivcare, please email BetterCallBehnken@wfla.com.