Written by a parent, not a doctor. Nothing here is medical advice.

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Pennsylvania program

Rides to appointments through Medical Assistance (MATP)

Free rides or help with travel costs to appointments covered by Medical Assistance. Your county runs the Medical Assistance Transportation Program.

What it is

Free rides or help with travel costs to appointments covered by Medical Assistance. Your county runs the Medical Assistance Transportation Program.

Medical Assistance can help with eligible treatment trips. Your county MATP office checks the trip and the appropriate travel option. Help may include a ride, transit fares or approved mileage payments. Having MA does not itself book a ride or approve distant-treatment expenses.

Eligibility rules
  • The rider must have MA and travel to an MA-covered service. County MATP enrollment is separate from the health insurance application.
  • The county reviews exceptional travel. A County Assistance Office may decide the allowance for some trips.
What you get
  • Rides to covered appointments at no family charge.
  • Mileage payments or public-transit fares when approved.
  • Lodging and meals for some approved long-distance trips.
What the help includes
  • Depending on the trip, help can be a ride, transit fare or mileage reimbursement.
  • Exceptional transportation can include air travel, lodging and meals after approval. County practice affects the arrangement.
If you decide to apply
  1. Contact your county MATP office using the state county list.
  2. Have the MA ID number and clinic schedule ready, and ask about repeated appointments.
  3. For distant care, bring the oncology team's letter and ask about travel costs before booking.

Philadelphia 1-877-835-7412; Allegheny 1-888-547-6287; Centre 814-355-6807; other counties on the DHS list · Official page ↗

After you ask
  • Once the county opens the ride account, you can discuss regular bookings for recurring clinic visits.
  • Each county sets its own booking notice; some want a call by early afternoon the day before, and three business days for trips out of the county. Ask your county office how far ahead to book repeated clinic visits and how urgent trips are handled.
Good to know

A lodging or meal payment is not automatic. Booking notice and payment amounts depend on the county.

Other details
  • Philadelphia's number is 1-877-835-7412, Allegheny's is 1-888-547-6287 and Centre's is 814-355-6807.
  • The statewide DHS page lists other county offices. There is no single statewide booking number.
Official sources
Ask your social worker

“Could MATP help with our clinic trips, including mileage or a ride? If care is far away, could you help us find out what lodging and meals the county would approve?”

Why I’m asking: Repeated travel is another treatment expense, and I need to know what the county can arrange.

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

Register with the county MATP office and book rides as far ahead as the county asks.

Your social worker

The social worker gives the clinic schedule for standing rides and writes the letter for exceptional transportation.

The care team

Records and letters when the application asks for them.

Who decides
The county MATP office; the County Assistance Office for extra allowances.
Ask your social worker
“Can you help us register with the county MATP and set up standing rides for clinic days? If treatment is far away, can you request exceptional transportation with lodging?”

How to apply

First step: Call the county MATP office (Philadelphia 1-877-835-7412; Allegheny 1-888-547-6287; others on the state's county list) the week MA starts.

  1. Call the county MATP office the week MA starts and ask how far ahead rides must be booked.
  2. For out-of-area treatment, ask about exceptional transportation and lodging before the trip.

Official application / program page ↗

Where it starts: Call the county MATP office; DHS lists every county.

What to gather

  • MA ID number
  • Clinic schedule
  • For distant care, a letter from the oncology team

How long: Booking lead times vary by county; we found no published figure, so ask.

What a yes looks like

A ride account with the county and standing bookings for clinic days.

What a no looks like, and the next move

No MA yet, or the trip is not to a covered service. Ask the county which it is.

Watch out

  • No statewide number: call the county office on the state's list.
  • Lodging and meals are not automatic; ask before the trip. The County Assistance Office may set the allowance.

The numbers and the rules

The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 9, 2026.

What it is worth

Rides, mileage or fares to MA-covered appointments through the county MATP; long trips can include lodging and meals with approval.

Covers: Rides, mileage reimbursement or transit fares to covered appointments · Exceptional transportation: air travel, lodging and meals when authorized

What it costs the family: None.

The eligibility facts, as published

Coverage
Medical Assistance
Route
county MATP office
Exceptional
referred to the County Assistance Office to decide an allowance (Venango procedure; county practice varies)

The trap: There is no single statewide ride company or phone number. Philadelphia books through 1-877-835-7412, Allegheny through 1-888-547-6287, Centre through 814-355-6807; other counties are on the state's county list.

Where I read this

← Back to your options