Nonemergency Medical Transportation and Health Care Visits among Chronically Ill Urban and Rural Medicaid Beneficiaries

Abstract

Inaccessibility to health care services due to lack of transportation affects the most vulnerable segments of the society. The effect of Medicaid-provided nonemergency medical transportation (NEMT) in Oklahoma on health care visits for the management of chronic illnesses is examined. Analyses of claims data show that African Americans are the highest users of NEMT. Medicaid beneficiaries who use NEMT services are significantly more likely to make the recommended number of annual visits for the management of chronic conditions than those who do not use NEMT. Increased use of NEMT by making the services more accommodating and convenient for beneficiaries is proposed.

Keywords::

• Medicaid
• nonemergency medical transportation
• NEMT
• health care visit

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors acknowledge the assistance of the Oklahoma Health Care Authority that provided the data for the study. The authors are particularly grateful to Mike Fogarty, Chief Executive Officer, and Angela Shoffner, Quality Control Manager, Oklahoma Health Care Authority, for their support.