Georgia program
Free rides to Medicaid appointments
Medicaid can arrange rides to covered appointments through Verida, including a medically necessary escort.
What it is
Medicaid can arrange rides to covered appointments through Verida, including a medically necessary escort.
Transportation is part of Medicaid once your child is enrolled. Verida arranges rides in all five Georgia regions. The trip and any extra travel expenses have their own rules.
Eligibility rules
- Your child needs Medicaid and a covered trip. Verida has served every Georgia region since April 1, 2026.
- For in-state extended travel help, treatment must be unavailable in your region and more than 50 miles from home. Precertified out-of-state care has a separate review. Georgia checks financial need and other travel resources, and written approval names the covered travel, meals, lodging and escort expenses. A managed-care member asks the plan which approval route applies.
What you get
- A free ride to and from covered appointments.
- One medically necessary escort rides without charge.
- Approved meals, lodging or other travel costs for qualifying distant treatment.
What the help includes
- The arranged vehicle can be a car, van or wheelchair van according to need. Escort travel expenses can be covered for members under 21.
- The program arranges approved help rather than providing general travel cash.
- Extended Transportation Services requires approval for the named travel, meals, lodging and escort expenses. A reservation alone does not make tickets or rooms reimbursable.
If you decide to apply
- Ask the social worker to help find your Verida region on Georgia’s Medicaid transportation page.
- Have ready: the Medicaid number, pickup address, clinic, appointment time and wheelchair or escort needs.
- Ask Verida about recurring visits and get the ride confirmation number.
Verida: North 866-388-9844; Atlanta 404-209-4000; Central 888-224-7981; East 888-224-7988; Southwest 888-224-7985 · Official page ↗
After you ask
- A confirmed reservation gives a pickup time and confirmation number. Verida’s member portal can also handle reservations.
- If a ride fails, the oncology office and broker can help address the missed trip and appointment.
- Short-notice, non-emergency visits have a broker review separate from emergency transport. Verida can confirm whether an exception fits and which vehicle and accompanying adult are approved.
Good to know
A clinic appointment does not confirm a ride. Routine reservations need three business days’ notice.
Other details
- Emergency transport is different from these scheduled rides. A medical emergency belongs with emergency services.
Official sources
“Could Medicaid rides help us get to treatment, including an escort or distant-care lodging if eligible? What are the benefits and drawbacks, and could you help us arrange the first request if appropriate?”
Why I’m asking: I want a reliable way to reach appointments and understand which travel costs can be covered.
More background and detailed requirements
Additional program information and published rules
Who does what
The three parts, side by side. The agency decides; nobody on this page does.
You
Book each trip or the recurring series and keep confirmations.
Your social worker
The social worker sets up recurring treatment trips and escalates failed rides.
The care team
Records and letters when the application asks for them.
- Who decides
- Verida, the statewide ride broker, under Georgia's Department of Community Health rules. DCH approves any meals or lodging.
- Ask your social worker
- “Can you set up standing rides for the treatment calendar and tell me who to call when a driver does not come?”
How to apply
First step: Find your region on Georgia's Medicaid transportation page and call Verida's line for it three business days ahead. Tell the clinic at once if a ride fails.
- Set up standing rides for the treatment calendar.
- Keep confirmation numbers. Tell the clinic when a ride fails.
Official application / program page ↗
Where it starts: member.verida.com or the Verida reservation line for your region (regions below; the DCH page maps county to region)
What to gather
- Medicaid number
- Pickup address, appointment time and clinic
- Wheelchair or escort needs (one medically necessary escort is free)
How long: Three business days' lead time.
What a yes looks like
A confirmation number and a pickup time.
What a no looks like, and the next move
Ask for the reason and the escalation line. Tell the oncology office at once so the visit is not lost.
Watch out
- Three business days' notice for a routine ride. A same-day emergency is 911, not the broker.
- A confirmed appointment is not a confirmed ride. Keep the confirmation number.
- Verida serves all five regions since April 1, 2026, but each region has its own reservation number: North 866-388-9844, Atlanta 404-209-4000, Central 888-224-7981, East 888-224-7988, Southwest 888-224-7985. The DCH page maps county to region.
- Meals and lodging are not automatic. They are possible for an in-state trip only when the treatment is not available in your region and is over 50 miles from home, and the written approval lists what is covered. Ask before you travel.
The numbers and the rules
The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 8, 2026.
What it is worth
A ride to and from Medicaid-covered appointments, with one medically necessary escort free. Meals and lodging only when treatment is not available in your region and is over 50 miles away, by approval. No cash.
- $50 (and the treatment is not available through a provider in the member's region; the written approval names the covered expenses) — Distance for meals and lodging on an in-state trip
- $21 — Escort travel expenses covered for members under
Covers: Ride arrangement · Car, van or wheelchair van as needed · One medically necessary escort without charge · Meals and lodging by approval when treatment is out of region and over 50 miles
What it costs the family: None.
The eligibility facts, as published
- Medicaid
- yes
- Covered trip
- yes
- Meals lodging
- in-state travel only, when the treatment is not available through a provider in the member's region and is over 50 miles from home; the DCH approval specifies which expenses are covered (DFCS §2936, May 2026)
- Escort
- one medically necessary escort rides without charge; escort travel expenses can be covered for members under 21
Decisions this site cannot make: Trip approval by the broker
Expect friction on: Three business days' lead time · Regional phone
The trap: Three business days' notice for a routine ride. A same-day emergency is 911, not the broker.
Where I read this
- Non-Emergency Medical Transportation — Georgia Department of Community Health, read August 27, 2026
- Medicaid manual §2936 Extended Transportation Services (May 2026, MT 79) — Georgia DHS/DFCS (PAMMS), read September 8, 2026
- Non-Emergency Medical Transportation: frequently asked questions — Georgia Department of Community Health, read September 8, 2026