Help Center
Member FAQs
If you do not find an answer to your question below, we encourage you to reach out to our team at (855) 955-7433 or to your health plan directly.
SafeRide Definitions
“Will call” is a ride option used when a member does not know when their appointment will end or when they need the driver to come pick them up. By letting SafeRide Health know they’d like to have a “will call” status when reserving the ride, once the member is ready to be picked up, they would notify us to flip the will call status and route a driver to them. Scheduled rides are different from will call and are exactly as they sound where there is a fixed ride time.
Rideshare rides utilize popular rideshare services like Uber and Lyft, and these vehicles are not specially equipped for additional physical mobility needs. If you have used Uber or Lyft before, these rides will feel like any other ride you’ve taken with them. You will receive a link to live-track your driver’s location just as you would in the native Uber or Lyft applications. Other forms of transportation (such as NEMT) are able to accommodate varying degrees of physical mobility.
Outside of rideshare, we offer a range of transportation options with the key differences outlined below to help understand what transportation options may be best fit for a ride need.
- Ambulatory door-to-door - Rides for patients who need help getting from their home or medical appointment to and from the car.
- Ambulatory curb-to-curb - Rides for patients who are capable of meeting their driver on the curb, getting in and out of the car unassisted, and walking into their appointment.
- Rideshare - Rideshare services like Lyft or Uber riding in a standard vehicle.
- Wheelchair / Bariatric - Wheelchair patients in vehicles with special equipment for accessibility and safety accommodations.
- Mileage Reimbursements - Member or member rep submit reimbursement for the trips taken for members.
- Mass Transit - Rides using available local public transportation options, buses and public taxi.
- Stretcher/Gurney - Rides equipped with a device used to move a patient who can't easily walk and needs to lie flat.
- 2 Man Assist - 2 man Assist rides are typically used for individuals that need assistance in a wheelchair going up or down steps.
- Meals and Lodging - Advance funds given from a health plan to an approved benefit for Meals and Lodging in additional to transportation.
- BLS/ALS - BLS(Basic Life Support): rides with certified Emergency Medical Technicians, who can provide basic life support for patients. ALS= Advance Life Support.
- Commercial Air Transport - There are two types of air ambulances used for medical transport: helicopters and fixed wing airplanes. Helicopters are used for short-haul, trauma-related emergency flights when time is of the essence. Helicopters are typically managed by hospitals, or city, county and state Emergency Management Systems.
Booking a Ride
Rideshare rides changes can be made any time. For non-emergency medical transportation (NEMT) rides, changes can be made with minimal issues if you are more than 3 days out from the scheduled ride. For changes to scheduled ride reservations within 3 days of the ride, please call your dedicated health plan’s line and we will do our best to accommodate your changes.
Yes, we service a wide variety of languages offering language interpreters for Spanish, Arabic, Mandarin, Russian, Vietnamese, Portuguese, French, Korean, and more.
Every health plan is different and this will depend on your health plan. For some, there is a hard stop on rides once at your eligible trip maximum. For other plans, there may be options available that you will have to speak about with the plan directly.
The more notice the better! We recommend booking up to 30 days out while the maximum is typically 6-8 weeks in advance. The member portal allows 6 weeks for certain booking types. If booking further out, we request that members call back when it gets closer as well to help confirm. If you are requesting a ride that provides help with physical mobility, equipment accommodations, or a ride greater than 30 miles – we recommend booking at least 2 business days in advance for higher ride fulfillment success.
To schedule a ride with SafeRide, call your dedicated line provided by your health plan. Additionally, your plan may offer self scheduling through our web-optimized member portal.
You will need to provide the following:
- First Name
- Last Name
- Member ID
- DOB
*Depending on your other health plan and other factors, more information may be necessary in some instances.
Please contact your dedicated line provided by your health plan. We would be happy to walk you through you trip eligibility.
Ride Logistics
Yes, we have a ride monitoring team on standby to triage any ride situation that my arise.
If additional equipment accommodations are needed, please ask the SafeRide call center representative what equipment accommodations are needed for your ride.
Under ADA compliance rules, you are allowed to travel with any kind of service animal.
Yes, you are permitted to bring along one other person for the duration of your ride. Please notify our team when scheduling your ride.
Nope! As long as you are within your maximum eligible rides as part of your transportation benefit, you will not be expected to pay for rides dispatched by SafeRide.
Ride Troubleshooting
Please call into our call center to cancel or reschedule your reservation. We would be happy to help! If you’re already set up on our member portal, you can also manage your upcoming rides from the online member portal.
First and foremost, contact SafeRide to see if we have an alternate transportation that’s closer. If you do not require mobility accommodations, we may be able to dispatch a rideshare (Uber or Lyft) driver if available. If you’re located in a rural area or not easily accessible at the time, we will do our best to schedule a replacement ride as soon as possible. We ask you to accommodate appointments 30 minutes before scheduled time to avoid these issues. Communication is key in these types of situations.
Yes, your driver will wait for you but the wait time will depend on the form of transportation you are taking. For rideshare rides, your driver will wait 5 minutes for you. For most NEMT vehicles, your driver will wait 15 minutes.
After the Ride
Most times members will call the call center line. Please call the call center to leave positive reviews. Members will also receive text messages after the competition of their ride where they can both rate their ride experience and leave additional comments.
Members need to call their health plan directly to file complaints. All complaints will be shared and handled appropriately with SafeRide once relayed.