Non-Emergency Medical Transportation Texas: Medicaid NEMT and Senior Transit Options

What NEMT Covers in Texas

Non-Emergency Medical Transportation (NEMT) is a Texas Medicaid transportation program. If your parent is enrolled in Texas Medicaid — including STAR+PLUS managed care — ask the plan how it can arrange transportation at no cost for eligible trips to covered medical services.

NEMT covers rides to and from:

• Doctor and specialist appointments
• Dialysis treatments
• Physical therapy and rehabilitation
• Dental and vision appointments
• Pharmacy pickups (when pharmacy delivery isn't available)
• Mental health and counseling sessions

It does not cover rides to the grocery store, social activities, or non-medical errands. The trip must be to a Medicaid-covered service provider.

How to Request a Ride

For STAR+PLUS members, NEMT is coordinated through your parent's Managed Care Organization (MCO). The process:

1. Call the MCO's transportation line — use the transportation number on the member's ID card, or ask member services for it
2. Request the ride as soon as the appointment is scheduled — the plan will tell you its notice requirement and whether same-day arrangements are available
3. Provide the appointment details — date, time, provider name, address, and whether your parent needs wheelchair accessibility or an attendant escort
4. Confirm the pickup instructions — the MCO assigns a transportation provider and gives your parent a pickup window

For traditional fee-for-service Medicaid (rare for Texas seniors, since most are in STAR+PLUS), NEMT is coordinated through the statewide NEMT broker.

Gas Mileage Reimbursement for Family Drivers

If a family member, friend, or neighbor drives your parent to a Medicaid-covered appointment, the MCO can reimburse mileage for eligible trips. Ask the MCO for the current rate and the required trip log and appointment verification.

To set this up:

1. Call the MCO's transportation line and tell them you have a volunteer driver
2. Request the mileage reimbursement instructions and required form
3. Keep the trip log and obtain any appointment verification the MCO requires
4. Submit the materials by the deadline the MCO gives you

This is one of the least-known Medicaid benefits in Texas. Families who live near their parent and are already driving them to appointments should be getting reimbursed — the paperwork takes five minutes per trip.

When NEMT Fails: Common Problems

The biggest complaint about Medicaid NEMT in Texas is reliability. Contracted transportation providers — often small van companies — run tight schedules across large service areas. Common issues:

• Late pickups that cause missed appointments (and rescheduling delays of weeks)
• No-shows where the vehicle never arrives
• Long ride times because the van picks up multiple passengers across a wide area
• Wheelchair-inaccessible vehicles dispatched for wheelchair-dependent riders

If your parent experiences repeated problems, file a complaint through the MCO's grievance process. If the MCO doesn't resolve it, ask the plan or HHSC how to escalate the transportation problem and whether a plan change is available.

Non-Medicaid Transportation Options

If your parent isn't on Medicaid, or needs rides to non-medical destinations, several Texas programs help:

AAA-Coordinated Transit: The 28 Area Agencies on Aging coordinate volunteer driver programs and senior transit vans funded through Title III of the Older Americans Act. Services vary by county — urban AAAs typically offer more scheduled routes, while rural AAAs rely on volunteer networks. Call 2-1-1 to connect with your parent's local AAA.

ADRC Volunteer Networks: Aging and Disability Resource Centers maintain lists of faith-based and community volunteer driver programs. These are especially valuable in rural East Texas, West Texas, and the Panhandle where public transit doesn't exist and Medicaid NEMT providers cover vast territories.

City and County Transit: Most Texas metro areas operate paratransit services under the ADA for seniors and people with disabilities. Dallas (DART), Houston (METRO), San Antonio (VIA), and Austin (CapMetro) all run demand-response paratransit. Eligibility requires an ADA certification process — typically a functional assessment and an in-person evaluation.

Building a Transportation Plan

Reliable transportation is one of the pillars of aging in place. When a parent can no longer drive and has no consistent ride to medical appointments, care gaps open fast — missed dialysis, skipped medication refills, delayed follow-ups after a fall or hospitalization.

The Aging in Place in Texas guide includes a transportation coordination template that maps Medicaid NEMT, AAA transit, paratransit, and volunteer networks into a weekly schedule, with backup options for each appointment type.

See more Texas guides →