Ohio Department of Medicaid
Medicaid Non-Emergency Transportation Assistance · About this organization
What you get
Medical rides, wheelchair vans, transit passes, fuel or mileage help, and approved travel-expense reimbursement, including an accompanying parent or guardian.
How to start
Give the ride service your appointment date, clinic address, pickup details, and any mobility needs.
Good to know
- Advance approval is important for mileage or expense reimbursement.
- Your child must be Medicaid-eligible at the time of the trip and the health service must be covered.
The details, as published
Ohio Medicaid must ensure necessary transportation for Medicaid-eligible people traveling to and from covered health care, including pediatric cancer appointments. Depending on the member's plan and county, assistance may be a scheduled cab or van, public-transit fare, fuel assistance, mileage reimbursement, necessary travel-expense reimbursement, or transportation for a parent accompanying a child under 21. Families should call their Medicaid managed-care plan or local County Department of Job and Family Services; the current managed-care guide says routine trips generally require 48 hours or two business days' notice.
What help you may get
Travel And Transportation
Medicaid Non-Emergency Transportation Assistance — travel and transportation
Ohio Medicaid must ensure necessary transportation for Medicaid-eligible people traveling to and from covered health care, including pediatric cancer appointments. Depending on the member's plan and county, assistance may be a scheduled cab or van, public-transit fare, fuel assistance, mileage reimbursement, necessary travel-expense reimbursement, or transportation for a parent accompanying a child under 21. Families should call their Medicaid managed-care plan or local County Department of Job and Family Services; the current managed-care guide says routine trips generally require 48 hours or two business days' notice.
Amount decided by the program · Per Trip
Can cover
- Contracted cab or van ride
- Fare prepayment
- Fuel voucher or fuel prepayment
- Mileage reimbursement
- Necessary out-of-pocket travel-expense reimbursement
- Public-transit payment or pass
- Transportation or payment for a parent or guardian accompanying a member under age 21
- Wheelchair van when appropriate
Does not cover
- Excess mileage from an unnecessarily indirect route
- Transportation already available free to the general public
- Transportation while the individual is not Medicaid-eligible
- Trips for services outside the member's Medicaid benefit package
- Trips that are not necessary to obtain covered care
- The mode, number of plan trips, mileage rate, and reimbursable expenses vary by county or managed-care plan; the reviewed statewide sources do not publish one universal dollar amount.
- County assistance is evaluated per request. Managed-care plans may have annual trip limits for extra benefits, while medically necessary transportation rules still apply.
Check the main eligibility rules
Diagnosis
B-ALL is in scope. The benefit applies to Medicaid-eligible individuals traveling to covered medically necessary care; pediatric B-ALL treatment is within that scope when it is covered by the member's Medicaid benefit package.
Age
Age 0 to no published upper limit, measured at service date.
- It specifically permits transportation or payment for a parent or legal guardian accompanying a Medicaid-eligible individual younger than 21.
- The rule applies to Medicaid-eligible individuals without a general age limit.
Treatment status
Active Treatment
- Provider confirmation is not published as mandatory.
- The destination must provide a covered health care service.
- The request must identify the provider and location.
- The child must have full Ohio Medicaid eligibility; the responsible managed-care plan or county determines which transportation channel applies.
- For a parent traveling to be with a child in a health facility, the rule requires that the parent lack the resources necessary to make the trip and that the parent's presence serve an identifiable health-care purpose benefiting the child.
- Transportation eligibility depends on current Ohio Medicaid eligibility rather than a separate transportation-program income table.
Where you live and where your child is treated
Where your family lives
You must live in: OH.
- The traveler must be eligible for Ohio Medicaid at the time of transport.
Where your child is treated
Treatment must be connected to: County assistance ordinarily uses the local community service area; when a covered service is only available outside it, assistance may be limited to the nearest available location unless another documented consideration overrides distance.; Transportation must be to or from a provider of a service covered by the individual's Medicaid benefit package..
- County assistance ordinarily uses the local community service area; when a covered service is only available outside it, assistance may be limited to the nearest available location unless another documented consideration overrides distance.
- Transportation must be to or from a provider of a service covered by the individual's Medicaid benefit package.
How to get started
Does a social worker or care team need to start it? No. A required care-team start is not published; the family can use the available route below.
Who can start: Caregiver, Parent Or Guardian, Patient
- Ask in advance whether the plan or county will book a ride, provide a fare or fuel option, or require mileage or expense documentation for reimbursement.
- For a routine managed-care trip, request transportation at least 48 hours or two business days before the appointment unless the plan permits an urgent exception.
- For managed care, call the plan's transportation scheduling number; otherwise contact the local County Department of Job and Family Services.
- Identify whether the child is enrolled in a Medicaid managed-care plan and obtain the child's Medicaid identification number.
- Provide the appointment date, provider name and address, trip details, and any mobility or accessibility needs.
Ways to apply or ask
- Online Portal · Open form or page
- Online Portal · Open form or page
- Phone · Open form or page · 1-800-324-8680 — Call the Ohio Medicaid Member Hotline for help identifying the correct plan or county channel. The current guide lists each managed-care plan's trip-scheduling number.
Documents to prepare
- Appointment date
- Documentation of medical or mobility needs when requested
- Ohio Medicaid identification number
- Provider identity and location
- Receipts or mileage records when reimbursement is approved
- Requested trip dates and number of one-way trips
- Families should confirm reimbursement requirements before driving or paying an expense.
- The county or managed-care plan selects an approved transportation option or preapproves reimbursement.
Availability and timing
| Program | Active |
|---|---|
| Applications | Open |
| Funding or space | Available |
| Application window | Not Applicable |
| Last checked | Aug 24, 2026 |
- Ohio's current administrative rule states that the Department of Medicaid is obligated to ensure necessary transportation to and from covered care.
- The current statewide managed-care guide was approved December 18, 2025 and lists active scheduling contacts for seven plans.
- The current managed-care guide says routine trips generally must be scheduled 48 hours or two business days up to 30 days in advance; urgent and discharge procedures vary by plan.
- Two business days is the standard managed-care scheduling lead time in the current statewide guide; contact the plan for urgent, discharge, or special trip procedures.
Limitations and things to confirm
- A county may limit out-of-area assistance to the nearest location offering the covered service unless another documented consideration applies.
- Advance approval is important for mileage or expense reimbursement.
- County and managed-care-plan transportation modes, local service areas, annual extra-trip limits, reimbursement rates, and documentation rules vary.
- The child must be Medicaid-eligible at the time of the trip and the health service must be covered.
- Does the plan allow same-day or urgent scheduling for the child's appointment type?
- Does the requested oncology facility qualify as the nearest appropriate covered provider, or will clinical justification for the farther facility be required?
- What receipts, driver attestations, or mileage forms must be submitted for the specific approved trip?
- Which transportation channel, trip limit, and mileage rate apply to the child's exact managed-care plan and county?
Official sources
Program details were last verified Aug 24, 2026. Availability can change, so check the official program before applying.
- Managed Care Organization Transportation Benefit Resource Guide · checked Aug 24, 2026
- Managed Care Organization Transportation Benefit Resource Guide · checked Aug 23, 2026
- Rule 5160-15-10 - Transportation: non-emergency services through a CDJFS · checked Aug 24, 2026
- Rule 5160-15-10 - Transportation: non-emergency services through a CDJFS · checked Aug 23, 2026
- Ohio Medicaid Consumer Hotline - Medicaid Managed Care FAQ · checked Aug 24, 2026
- Ohio Medicaid Consumer Hotline - Medicaid Managed Care FAQ · checked Aug 23, 2026