Digital transformation essentials —  Non-emergency medical transportation

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Non-Emergency Medical Transportation (NEMT) solutions help healthcare organizations optimize patient access to medical care when transportation is a barrier. These solutions can streamline transportation logistics and reduce missed appointments by identifying transportation needs earlier and coordinating reliable rides more effectively.

Non-emergency medical transportation framework


Transportation hub
Solutions that identify patients with transportation barriers and connect them with appropriate transportation services based on mobility needs, location, and urgency.

Example companies: Roundtrip, Kaizen Health, Modivcare, SafeRide Health, Hitch Health

Direct service providers
Solutions that provide transportation services with digital interfaces that facilitate real-time communication between patients, healthcare providers, and transportation vendors, ensuring timely pickups, reducing wait times, and providing status updates to all stakeholders throughout the transportation journey while ensuring compliance through healthcare-credentialed services.

Example companies: Lyft Healthcare, Uber Health, MTM Health, Modivcare

These are example companies, and not meant to be comprehensive. Did we miss your company? Schedule some time to connect.

The case for non-emergency medical transportation

Transportation barriers represent a critical healthcare access challenge affecting millions of patients nationwide, particularly those with chronic conditions, limited mobility, and lower socioeconomic status. As healthcare delivery becomes increasingly complex and distributed across various settings, digital NEMT solutions have emerged as essential technologies that transform how patient transportation is managed while reducing missed appointments, optimizing operational costs, and improving patient outcomes.

Reduce missed appointments and care gaps
Missed appointments due to transportation issues represent significant clinical and financial challenges for healthcare organizations. Approximately 3.6 million Americans miss or delay medical care each year due to transportation barriers.1 NEMT solutions help address these challenges by identifying patients with transportation needs and connecting them with appropriate services. Through systematic identification of transportation barriers and proactive intervention, healthcare organizations can improve patient access to care while simultaneously reducing costs and improving health outcomes.
Improve patient experience and satisfaction
Transportation challenges create significant stress for patients and can negatively impact their overall healthcare experience. According to peer-reviewed research, between 10-51% of patients report that transportation was a barrier to access, with low-income patients facing higher rates of access barriers than the general population.2 Digital NEMT platforms address these concerns through reliable scheduling, real-time ride tracking, and personalized transportation options based on patient needs. By ensuring reliable, comfortable transportation to healthcare settings, these solutions enable patients to focus on their health rather than logistical challenges, ultimately improving both satisfaction scores and clinical outcomes.
Advance access and health equity
There is an intensified focus on addressing social determinants of health, including transportation, with CMS expanding its allowances for transportation benefits under Medicare Advantage plans and some Medicaid programs. Medicare Advantage plans can now include NEMT as a supplemental benefit, with around 36% of plans offering transportation benefits in 2024.3 Medicaid beneficiaries also utilize NEMT to access a variety of services outside of primary visits and include behavioral health, dialysis, specialist visits, and rehab.4 By removing transportation as a barrier to consistent healthcare access, these solutions help healthcare organizations advance health equity goals, improve community health outcomes, and ensure all patients have equal opportunity to benefit from available healthcare services regardless of their transportation resources.
Sources
  1. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7204444/
  2. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4265215/
  3. https://www.goodrx.com/insurance/medicare/medicare-cover-transportation
  4. https://www.kff.org/medicaid/issue-brief/medicaid-non-emergency-medical-transportation-overview-and-key-issues-in-medicaid-expansion-waivers/
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