What Medical Transportation Costs in the DC Area: 2026 Cost Index

The short version

Medicare: what it pays, and what it doesn’t

Original Medicare (Parts A and B) pays for non-emergency ambulance transport only when an ambulance is medically necessary and a doctor has ordered it in writing. It never pays for a wheelchair van or a stretcher van. After the Part B deductible, the patient pays 20% of the Medicare-approved amount.

Medicare’s 2026 ambulance fee schedule sets these allowed amounts for a basic life support (BLS) non-emergency trip, code A0428:

Worked example: a 10-mile BLS non-emergency ambulance trip in the DC area has a Medicare-approved amount of $326.42 + (10 × $9.33) = $419.72. The patient’s 20% share is $83.94 after the deductible, and only if the trip meets Medicare’s medical-necessity rules. The same 10-mile trip one way in an H&M wheelchair van costs $120 private pay.

Some Medicare Advantage plans add a transportation benefit that covers wheelchair or stretcher vans. Call the member services number on your plan card and ask. See our Medicare Advantage guide and Does Medicare cover wheelchair transportation?

Sources: CMS Ambulance Fee Schedule, CY2026; Medicare.gov, Ambulance services; Medicare Rights Center, Ambulance transportation basics.

Medicaid: covered rides cost the member nothing

Virginia. Call the transportation number on your Medicaid ID card; the brokers we work with are MTM Health and SafeRide Health. Request H&M Transport specifically when you book your ride. See our Virginia Medicaid transportation guide.

Washington, DC. We serve members of UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of the District of Columbia, through SafeRide Health. See DC Medicaid transportation.

Maryland. Maryland Medicaid transportation is arranged through each county’s local health department (in Montgomery County, the Department of Transportation). In Prince George’s County, rides must be booked at least 24 hours ahead. H&M Transport is not a Maryland Medicaid provider. See Maryland Medicaid transportation.

Sources: Virginia DMAS, Transportation services; Maryland Department of Health, public notice 26-0002; Prince George’s County Health Department, NEMT program.

Paratransit and other low-cost options

Under federal ADA rules, paratransit covers trips within three-quarters of a mile of a fixed bus or rail route. Riders must be able to travel curb to curb, and fares can’t exceed twice the regular fare. Paratransit doesn’t provide door-through-door help, stretchers or same-day service. Those are the gaps a wheelchair or stretcher van fills.

Sources: WMATA, Riding with MetroAccess; Fairfax Connector fares; FASTRAN; OmniRide Access; Loudoun County paratransit; Montgomery County Call-n-Ride; 49 CFR 37.123; 49 CFR 37.131.

Our private-pay rates

Every trip is a pick-up fee plus mileage. Round trips bill per leg.

Common add-ons: stair chair $75 each way; prescheduled wait time $75 an hour for wheelchair trips and $100 an hour for stretcher trips. The full rate card and an estimator are on our rates page. Facilities book on contracted rates.

Can you use an HSA or FSA, or deduct the ride?

Usually, yes. IRS Publication 502 counts transportation “primarily for and essential to medical care” as a medical expense, and HSAs and FSAs use the same definition. Medical expenses are deductible only above 7.5% of adjusted gross income. If you drive yourself, the 2026 IRS medical mileage rate is 20.5 cents a mile for January through June and 23.5 cents a mile for July through December. We send an itemized receipt for any trip on request.

Sources: IRS Publication 502; IRS Publication 969; IRS standard mileage rates.

Why getting there matters

An estimated 5.8 million people in the United States delayed medical care in 2017 because they had no transportation (Wolfe, McDonald and Holmes, American Journal of Public Health, 2020). An earlier study found that paying for non-emergency transportation saves money or is cost-effective across every condition it looked at (Wallace et al., Transportation Research Record, 2006).

Sources: Wolfe et al., AJPH 2020; Wallace et al., TRR 2006.

Common questions

Does Medicare pay for a wheelchair van or stretcher van?

No. Original Medicare (Parts A and B) never pays for a wheelchair van or a stretcher van. It pays for non-emergency ambulance transport only when an ambulance is medically necessary and a doctor has ordered it in writing. Some Medicare Advantage plans add a transportation benefit, so call the member services number on your plan card and ask.

How much does a stretcher van cost in the DC area?

Our private-pay stretcher rate is $260 plus $4 a mile one way, or $230 a leg with 5 miles included (then $4 a mile) on a round trip. Long-distance stretcher trips of 50 miles or more are $300 plus $6 a mile.

Is paratransit cheaper than a wheelchair van?

Yes. MetroAccess costs up to $4.50 a trip. But paratransit requires ADA eligibility, covers only trips near a fixed bus or rail route, runs curb to curb, and must be booked a day or more ahead. It doesn’t provide door-through-door help, stretchers or same-day service.

Get a quote

Call dispatch at (703) 304-7889, any hour, or request a trip online. Give us the pickup and drop-off addresses and the level of service, and we’ll quote the trip before you book.