# How to Become an LVCAP (Licking Valley Community Action Program) Medicaid Transportation Provider in 2027

Canonical URL: https://nemtguide.com/brokers/lvcap/ · Updated 2026-09-30

Licking Valley Community Action Program (LVCAP), a Flemingsburg community action agency, brokers Kentucky Medicaid rides in Region 16 as of September 2026: Bracken, Fleming, Lewis, Mason, and Robertson counties. Riders book at 800-327-5196 at least 72 hours ahead. A private company first gets Taxi or Disabled Persons Vehicle authority from the state, then calls LVCAP at 606-845-0081 to ask about a subcontract.

- LVCAP is the only Medicaid ride broker for Bracken, Fleming, Lewis, Mason, and Robertson counties, and the state lists 106 LVCAP vehicles in its August 2026 transit asset plan.
- The Transportation Cabinet approves every subcontractor and sets one Region 16 rate per service type, the same for LVCAP's own vans.
- Riders certified for Type 07 (disoriented) or Type 08 (wheelchair) service may ask LVCAP to send your company by name.
- LVCAP carries riders to medical facilities in Kentucky and Ohio, and a paid trip into Ohio can bring in federal carrier rules.
- LVCAP's weather policy has three levels, and at Level 2 only dialysis and cancer riders ride in the affected counties.

LVCAP stands for Licking Valley Community Action Program, a community action agency founded in 1965 as part of the War on Poverty. Its central office is at 203 High Street in Flemingsburg. As of September 2026 it has about 100 staff and six locations across five northeastern Kentucky counties: Bracken, Fleming, Lewis, Mason, and Robertson.

Those five counties make up Region 16 of Kentucky's Human Service Transportation Delivery program, or HSTD, and LVCAP is their Medicaid ride broker. Medicaid riders in the region book their HSTD rides through LVCAP. LVCAP assigns each trip, and a private company can only get Region 16 Medicaid work as an LVCAP subcontractor approved by the state.

## What LVCAP runs in Region 16

LVCAP's transportation department does more than Medicaid. Its public transit page lists these services as of September 2026:

| Service | Who rides | Hours | Cost to the rider |
|---|---|---|---|
| Human Services Transportation Delivery (Medicaid rides) | Medicaid members with no other way to reach covered care | Booking weekdays 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Saturdays 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.; urgent care by pager after hours, Sundays and state holidays included | Paid by Medicaid |
| Public transportation | Anyone, booked 72 hours ahead | Weekdays 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. | Round trips: $12 inside the home county, $20 to a neighboring county, $100 out of the rural area, such as to Cincinnati, Lexington, Ashland, or Covington |
| Title III-B senior transportation | Residents 60 and over, for medical needs and personal business, locally and out of the area | Ask the county senior center | Ask the county senior center |
| Veterans transportation | Veterans and their families who qualify | Call 800-327-5196 to check | Ask LVCAP |

LVCAP's public fare list prices a separate round trip out of the rural area, to cities such as Cincinnati and Lexington. Its Medicaid service reaches medical facilities in both Kentucky and Ohio, and Bracken, Lewis, and Mason counties border Ohio.

### LVCAP's own fleet

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet's Tier II Transit Asset Management Plan, revised August 25, 2026, lists 106 LVCAP vehicles bought partly or fully with federal funds. Most are minivans and vans, and 65 of them have at least one wheelchair position. They include four 2025 Ford cutaway buses that each carry up to 10 riders, counting two wheelchair positions. LVCAP's 2026 Title VI plan says it is not a fixed route provider; its public trips, like its Medicaid rides, are booked ahead.

### How Region 16 is funded

Kentucky Medicaid pays the Transportation Cabinet a monthly [capitation](https://nemtguide.com/glossary/capitation/) rate for each eligible member, and the Cabinet pays LVCAP. The November 5, 2025 briefing to lawmakers listed Region 16 at $11.85 per member per month, the fourth highest of Kentucky's 15 regions, up from $10.22 in the Cabinet's state fiscal year 2023 report. That payment funds everything LVCAP does as broker. It is not what a subcontractor earns per trip.

The Cabinet awards each region through a request for proposals under KRS Chapter 45A. Under 603 KAR 7:080, a broker contract runs one state fiscal year, July 1 to June 30, with up to four one-year renewals.

## Where a private company fits with LVCAP

Start with the rules on who carries each trip. Under 603 KAR 7:080, a rider who needs no special vehicle may go by taxi, bus, or private auto, grouped with other riders when that works. The broker picks the mode. For those riders, LVCAP may use its own minivans or yours.

Riders who need a specialty carrier are different. A Type 07 rider walks but is disoriented and may need an escort. A Type 08 rider uses a wheelchair and needs a lift or ramp vehicle. The rider's clinician sets that level, and LVCAP cannot change it. Under KRS 281.874, these riders may ask LVCAP for any eligible subcontractor by name. When they name no one, LVCAP must spread their trips fairly among itself and all certified providers, and 603 KAR 7:080 sets the order: coordination first, then cost, and then rotation.

Before you buy a vehicle, call LVCAP and ask three things:

1. Which of the five counties are short on capacity.
2. Which service types it needs: Type 02 for riders who walk, or Type 07 and Type 08.
3. Whether it sends out its long trips to Lexington and Cincinnati.

A Type 08 subcontract needs a [wheelchair accessible vehicle](https://nemtguide.com/glossary/wheelchair-accessible-vehicle/) with a built-in lift or ramp. Type 02 work can run in a sedan or minivan.

### Trips that cross into Ohio

Bracken, Lewis, and Mason counties border four Ohio counties: Adams, Brown, Clermont, and Scioto. Kentucky's Taxi and Disabled Persons Vehicle certificates are intrastate authority. A paid trip that crosses a state line can require FMCSA operating authority and a USDOT number, even in a minivan, unless an exemption applies. Read [when a NEMT company needs a USDOT number](https://nemtguide.com/guides/dot-number-for-nemt/) before you accept an Ohio run, and ask LVCAP whether it assigns those trips to subcontractors at all.

## How to subcontract with LVCAP, step by step

The Cabinet sets one order for every regional broker. LVCAP cannot sign you until the Cabinet approves you, and trips come only after that.

1. **Set up your company.** File with the Kentucky Secretary of State if your business type requires it, get an EIN from the IRS, and get an [NPI](https://nemtguide.com/guides/how-to-get-an-npi-number-for-nemt/).
2. **Get operating authority.** Call the Division of Motor Carriers at 502-564-1257 for Taxi or Disabled Persons Vehicle (DPV) authority. Your insurer files a Form E first. Before you apply, have at least one vehicle with a county clerk plate, finish every vehicle inspection by an automotive service technician, and finish the nationwide criminal background checks. Allow up to 14 business days. Motor Carriers then qualifies each vehicle and issues a plate and fee receipt card.
3. **Call LVCAP.** Tell the transportation office at 606-845-0081 that you hold a certificate and want to subcontract. LVCAP reviews the contract with you, inspects your vehicles, and collects your insurance, registrations, Kentucky workers' compensation proof, certificates, fee receipt cards, and any vehicle leases.
4. **Set up testing and training.** Every employee and driver goes into the statewide random drug and alcohol pool. Safety-sensitive staff need background checks and pre-employment drug and alcohol tests, and drivers need the minimum training.
5. **Apply for Medicaid provider numbers.** Fill out one MAP-811 for each service type: 02, 07, and 08 for a for-profit company, or 04, 07, and 08 for a nonprofit. Put provider type 56 in box 7 and the specialty in box 8: 263 for Type 02, 262 for Type 04, 264 for Type 07, and 265 for Type 08. Sign page 12, have LVCAP sign it as broker, then file through the Kentucky Medicaid Partner Portal with that signature page, your certificate, and your IRS letter showing your EIN. Paper forms are no longer accepted.
6. **Hand over your welcome letters.** Medicaid sends a welcome letter with a provider number for each type. Give copies to LVCAP. LVCAP sends your file to the Office of Transportation Delivery, which approves the subcontract.
7. **Go to orientation.** LVCAP must hold an orientation meeting with you before your first trip.

The Cabinet requires every new provider to keep at least three active, approved drivers and three operational passenger vehicles. Once you are in, you may not solicit Medicaid trips. Our guide to [NEMT subcontracting](https://nemtguide.com/guides/subcontract-nemt-trips/) covers the business side.

### What it costs

| Item | Amount as of September 2026 | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Taxi or DPV certificate | $250 to apply, $250 to renew each year | KRS 281.630 |
| Motor carrier vehicle license | $30 a year per vehicle | KRS 281.631 |
| City or county vehicle license, where charged | No more than $30 a year per vehicle | KRS 281.631 |
| Liability insurance, vehicle with up to 7 regular seats | $100,000 per person, $300,000 total, $50,000 property damage | KRS 281.655 |
| Liability insurance, vehicle with 8 or more regular seats | $100,000 per person, $600,000 total, $50,000 property damage | KRS 281.655 |
| Kentucky Medicaid enrollment fee, provider type 56 | None; type 56 is not on the list that pays the $750 fee for 2026 | DMS application fee page |

A Taxi certificate allows up to 8 regular seats per vehicle. A DPV certificate allows up to 15, and every vehicle on it must meet 49 CFR part 38 with a built-in lift or ramp.

### What your LVCAP subcontract must include

603 KAR 7:080 lists the terms every broker subcontract carries: how payment works, the hours and scheduling rules, the rate for each service, pickup and delivery standards, the contract's length, termination and penalty terms, signed HIPAA confidentiality statements from your staff, and a current list of your safety-sensitive staff. Read the pickup and delivery standards closely, and ask how they apply to long trips out of the region.

## Drivers, vehicles, and riders on LVCAP trips

Every Region 16 trip follows the state's HSTD rules. The main ones for your staff:

- **Drivers and escorts** are 18 or older, hold a Kentucky license for the vehicle, have no more than two moving violations in three years and no sexual or violent crime convictions, and pass a pre-employment drug test. They complete first aid, bloodborne pathogens, and passenger assistance training. Anyone with a misdemeanor or felony in the last five years drives only with LVCAP, your company, and the Cabinet all approving.
- **Name tags.** LVCAP must require your drivers to carry name tags and a company photo ID.
- **Vehicles** carry two seat belt extensions, a belt cutter above the driver's door, a tagged fire extinguisher, three reflectors on stands, first aid and spill kits, working heat and air conditioning, and maps or GPS. Your legal company name goes on the driver and passenger side doors in 2-inch block letters. A vehicle not covered by 601 KAR 1:005 needs a technician's inspection every year.
- **Door help.** A Type 07 or 08 rider without an escort gets help to and from the vehicle when it takes under 5 minutes and your driver can keep the vehicle in sight if others are aboard. Otherwise one escort per vehicle is needed. A driver who steps away turns the engine off and keeps the key, or uses a transmission lock.
- **Children and escorts.** A parent, guardian, or their designee rides with any child under 13, and your staff cannot be the designee for a child 12 or under. Escorts and parents ride free.

LVCAP's posted rider rules include exact change on public transit, ready 15 minutes before pickup, seat belts on, no children on laps, no smoking or food, and cancel at least 24 hours ahead. See our [escorts and caregivers guide](https://nemtguide.com/guides/escorts-and-caregivers/) for how escort rules work across programs.

### Reporting and paperwork

Report any moving violation or accident on a trip to LVCAP at once; LVCAP must report it to the Cabinet within 24 hours of the occurrence. Keep encounter data and trip invoices for five years. Never hand a trip to another company, because a subcontractor may not assign trips.

## LVCAP's bad weather levels

Each broker keeps a weather policy the Cabinet approves. LVCAP's Inclement Weather Contingency Plan, dated June 19, 2014 and still linked from its transit page in September 2026, uses three levels:

| Level | What it means for trips |
|---|---|
| Level 1 | Hazards in isolated areas. Expect delays in rural areas; service runs only on roads that are priority for snow removal as they open |
| Level 2 | Some counties hazardous. Service in those counties is cancelled except for acute care riders, such as dialysis and cancer patients |
| Level 3 | Kentucky declares a state of emergency. LVCAP does not operate, and acute care riders are told to call local emergency units |

The transportation supervisor decides, with driver reports weighed in, and the dispatcher on duty tells local radio stations about limited or delayed service. When conditions turn, LVCAP staff offer acute care riders the choice to leave early and ride home before roads get worse. Match your own plan to these levels; our [bad weather policy guide](https://nemtguide.com/guides/nemt-bad-weather-policy/) shows how.

## How LVCAP pays you

A Region 16 trip pays the rate the Cabinet sets for its service type, and LVCAP's own vehicles earn that same rate. The Cabinet weighs terrain, trip distance, rider population, where medical care and jobs are, labor and economic factors, and use of the service. In state fiscal year 2023, the Cabinet adjusted subcontractor rates on May 1, 2023 for Regions 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 14; Region 16 was not one of them. Ask LVCAP for the current rate sheet for each type you plan to run.

| Step | Deadline |
|---|---|
| You invoice LVCAP | By the 1st of the month; a later invoice moves to the next month's billing |
| LVCAP reports to the Cabinet | By the 7th |
| The Cabinet pays LVCAP | By the 15th, once reports and the Medicaid eligible count are in |
| LVCAP pays you | Within 3 business days of being paid (KRS 281.875) |
| Last day to bill a trip | 6 months after the date of service |

## What House Bill 2 changes for Region 16

House Bill 2 became 2026 Acts Chapter 179 on April 14, 2026. For LVCAP subcontractors the key parts are a GPS device in every vehicle on Medicaid rides so the broker can see its location, with the cost on the broker; a 2% withhold from each broker's capitation, earned back on measures such as completed, delayed, and canceled trips and rider satisfaction; and a minimum medical loss ratio for each broker of 85% for the year that began July 1, 2026, rising to 90% for the year that begins July 1, 2029. The law also told the Medicaid Oversight and Advisory Board to review the regional broker system and other models and report by December 31, 2026. Our [House Bill 2 report](https://nemtguide.com/news/kentucky-hb2-nemt-changes/) covers the details, and our [GPS tracking guide](https://nemtguide.com/guides/nemt-gps-tracking/) covers the equipment.

## Who to call

| For | Contact |
|---|---|
| LVCAP transportation office and subcontract questions | 606-845-0081 or 800-803-1310 (voice and TTY), 203 High Street, Flemingsburg, KY 41041 |
| LVCAP Medicaid ride line | 1-800-327-5196 |
| LVCAP transportation fax | 606-845-3024 |
| Division of Motor Carriers, Taxi and DPV certificates | 502-564-1257 |
| Office of Transportation Delivery | 502-564-7433, weekdays 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Eastern |
| Statewide rider complaint and denial line | 1-888-941-7433 |
| Kentucky Medicaid provider enrollment help (KY MPPA) | 877-838-5085 |

Keep your certificate, insurance declarations, vehicle list, and driver files together before the first call; the [credentialing checklist](https://nemtguide.com/templates/nemt-credentialing-checklist/) helps. Counties around Region 16 belong to other brokers: Pendleton, Harrison, and Nicholas to [FTSB](https://nemtguide.com/brokers/ftsb/), and Bath, Rowan, Carter, and Greenup to [LKLP](https://nemtguide.com/brokers/lklp/). The [Kentucky state guide](https://nemtguide.com/states/kentucky/) covers the program statewide.

## Frequently asked questions

### Which counties does LVCAP cover for Medicaid rides?

As of September 2026, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet lists LVCAP as the broker for Region 16: Bracken, Fleming, Lewis, Mason, and Robertson counties. These are the same five counties LVCAP serves with its senior centers, public transit, and other community programs. Riders who live anywhere else in Kentucky book through a different regional broker.

### What number do riders call to book an LVCAP ride?

The Cabinet lists 1-800-327-5196 as LVCAP's toll-free line and 606-845-0081 as its office number. Riders call Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., or Saturday, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., at least 72 hours before the appointment. After hours, including Sundays and state holidays, LVCAP keeps a pager for urgent care rides.

### Does LVCAP take Medicaid riders to Cincinnati or Lexington?

Yes, when the trip qualifies. LVCAP says it carries riders to medical facilities in Kentucky and Ohio. Under 603 KAR 7:080, a ride may go to the rider's home county or any county touching it without a referral. A trip farther away needs the state's Medicaid Medical Referral Form, good for six months, to the closest provider of that care.

### How much does LVCAP pay a subcontractor per trip?

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet sets the rate, not LVCAP. It sets one rate for each service type in each region, the same for every provider there, LVCAP included, and gives brokers 45 days of notice before it changes subcontractor rates. Your subcontract must list the rates. LVCAP must pay you within 3 business days after the Cabinet pays it.

### Is LVCAP adding outside transportation companies?

Ask before you buy a vehicle. LVCAP runs a large fleet of its own, and the Cabinet must approve any subcontract before you sign it. Call the transportation office at 606-845-0081 and ask which counties and service types need more capacity, especially Type 07 and Type 08 trips, where riders may ask for a provider by name.

### Does LVCAP arrange stretcher rides?

No. Kentucky's broker rule, 603 KAR 7:080, leaves nonemergency ambulance stretcher transportation out, and so does the federal waiver for April 1, 2025 through March 31, 2027. Members in a Medicaid health plan get stretcher rides through the plan, and other members through fee-for-service Medicaid, as nonemergency ambulance service.

## Official resources

- [LVCAP: Public Transit and Medicaid rides](https://www.lvcap.com/services/public-transport/)
- [LVCAP: Inclement Weather Contingency Plan](https://www.lvcap.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/LvcapInclementWeatherPolicy.pdf)
- [KYTC: How to become a subcontract NEMT provider](https://transportation.ky.gov/TransportationDelivery/Pages/Non-Emergency-Medical-Transportation-Provider.aspx)
- [KYTC: Regional brokers and the counties they serve](https://transportation.ky.gov/TransportationDelivery/Pages/Human-Services-Transportation.aspx)
- [Kentucky Division of Motor Carriers: Passenger vehicle certificates](https://drive.ky.gov/Motor-Carriers/Pages/Passenger-Vehicle.aspx)
- [Kentucky Medicaid: MAP-811 Provider Application](https://chfs.ky.gov/agencies/dms/MAPForms/Map811.pdf)
- [Kentucky Medicaid Partner Portal (KY MPPA)](https://medicaidsystems.ky.gov/Partnerportal/home.aspx)
- [Kentucky Administrative Regulations: 603 KAR 7:080](https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/kar/titles/603/007/080/)