How to Become a Ride to Care Transportation Provider in 2027

Ride to Care is the non-emergent medical transportation (NEMT) program for members of Health Share of Oregon, the coordinated care organization (CCO) that serves Oregon Health Plan (OHP) members in Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington counties. It gives members rides in vehicles, transit passes, and mileage reimbursement to get to covered care. CareOregon manages the program on Health Share’s behalf, and several partner organizations split the work.

For a transportation company, the partner that matters most is Ride Connection, a Portland nonprofit that manages the network of transportation providers and makes sure drivers meet the training and credentialing rules. As of September 2026, Ride to Care says it works with about 60 contracted transportation providers.

Who runs Ride to Care

Ride to Care’s About page lists the partners behind the program. Each handles a different part of a trip, and all of them work in one shared scheduling system.

Partner	What it does for Ride to Care
CareOregon	Manages and oversees the program for Health Share of Oregon
Transdev	Runs the primary call center, schedules future trips, and handles grievance quality checks
ComTrans	Runs dispatch and the same-day call center, and monitors scheduled trips each day
Ride Connection	Manages the transportation provider network and member mileage reimbursement

CareOregon’s transportation provider manual (version 1.3, February 2024) calls Ride Connection the network manager, ComTrans of Oregon the dispatch manager, and Transdev the call center manager. The same manual serves two other CCOs CareOregon manages rides for: Columbia Pacific CCO, whose program is NW Rides, and Jackson Care Connect, whose program is TransLink.

Vehicle rides are the biggest part of the program. As of September 2026, Ride to Care’s About page puts them at more than 1,400 completed trips a day on average, more than its transit and mileage reimbursement trips combined.

Which riders and counties Ride to Care covers

Ride to Care serves only Health Share members. Other OHP members in the same three counties book through other ride services. The Oregon Health Authority (OHA) lists these, as of September 2026:

Riders in Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington counties	Ride service
Health Share of Oregon members	Ride to Care, 855-321-4899
Trillium members	MTM Health, 877-583-1552
Yamhill Community Care members	WellRide, run by Transdev Health Solutions, 844-256-5720
All other members, including open card	Tri-County MedLink, 866-336-2906

To carry every OHP rider in the Portland area, you need a contract with each of these ride services. The Oregon state guide covers the ride services in the rest of the state.

Contract dates and history

Ride to Care has changed managers twice. Its history sheet (January 2022) gives this timeline:

Date	What happened
2014	CCOs took over NEMT in the Portland area, which OHA and TriMet had arranged before
January 1, 2015	Ride to Care began, operated by Access2Care for Health Share and FamilyCare
June 1, 2018	GridWorks IC took over management of Ride to Care
September 2019	Health Share renewed its five-year CCO contract with OHA and delegated NEMT to CareOregon
November 2019	CareOregon asked brokerages and transportation companies to bid on the call center, dispatch, and network management
March 2020	CareOregon’s subcontracted partners took over from GridWorks IC

Ride to Care depends on Health Share’s CCO contract with OHA. OHA’s July 2025 update to the Oregon Health Policy Board says the current CCO contracts were set to expire December 31, 2026, and that OHA committed to extend them to December 31, 2028. New CCO contracts take effect January 1, 2029, after a procurement that begins in early 2027. Watch for changes to who runs NEMT for Health Share during that procurement.

How to join Ride to Care, step by step

1. Set up your company. Register with the Oregon Secretary of State, and in Washington too if you operate there. Get a City of Portland business license if you work in the city.
2. Call Ride Connection Provider Support at 503-528-1751 or email providersupport@rideconnection.org. Tell them your service area, hours, vehicle types, and the levels of service you offer.
3. Sign the provider contract. It sets your rates, insurance limits, and the documents you must keep current.
4. Credential every driver and vehicle. Send training certificates, driving records, background checks, registrations, inspections, and insurance to the brokerage before the first trip.
5. Get Portland permits for your company, vehicles, and drivers if you will pick up riders inside the city. Portland requires the brokerage contract first.
6. Sort out Medicaid enrollment and your NPI. OAR 410-141-3565 requires providers to be enrolled with OHA, as a fee-for-service or encounter-only provider, before their encounter data is accepted. Ask Ride Connection whether it files OHP 3108 for you. See how to get an NPI number.
7. Get access to the provider tools. Contracted providers log in to the NEMT Provider Resources page for the manual and forms, and receive trips through the scheduling system.

Keep one folder per driver and vehicle from day one. The NEMT credentialing checklist lists the pieces most brokerages ask for.

What Oregon and Ride to Care require from drivers

Oregon’s CCO rule for drivers and vehicles is OAR 410-141-3925. Before you hire a driver, the driver must have:

• A valid license of the right class, with any endorsements needed for the vehicle. Ride to Care accepts an Oregon or Washington license.
• No listing on the federal OIG exclusion list.
• A passed criminal background check under ORS 181A.195 and 181A.200. CCOs must have an exception process that weighs when a crime happened and what it was.
• A disclosure of any state drug law violation and of their driving history, a federal requirement from the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021.

Ride to Care adds that each driver’s driving record and background check are reviewed every year.

Training	When it is due
Red Cross approved First Aid, CPR, and blood spill procedures, or equivalent	Before driving any member, kept current
National Safety Council defensive driving, or equivalent	Within three months of hire, then every three years
Passenger Service and Safety, or equivalent	Within three months of hire, then every three years. Wheelchair van drivers take the wheelchair securement portion
NEMT basics, reporting forms, fraud and abuse reporting, and the service area	Part of required job training
Emergency procedures and state driving laws	Part of required job training
Road test in the vehicle the driver will use	Before driving (CareOregon requirement)
Program briefings and cultural responsiveness training	As the brokerage schedules them (CareOregon requirement)

The manual also asks you to evaluate every driver regularly, keep signed evaluations in the personnel file, and have each driver sign the brokerage’s code of conduct. See NEMT driver training for course options.

Drug and alcohol testing must meet the local, state, and federal rules that apply to you. The manual requires a drug-free workplace and an anti-drug policy, and a driver who refuses a test or tests positive may not perform NEMT trips.

Vehicle, insurance, and technology requirements

OAR 410-141-3925 requires every NEMT vehicle to be clean, smoke-free at all times, and maintained on at least the manufacturer’s schedule. The required equipment:

Required by Oregon rule	Added by CareOregon
Seat belts for all passengers	Seat belt extender
First aid kit	Bloodborne pathogens spill kit
Fire extinguisher	Seat belt cutter
Roadside reflective or warning devices	Spare tire or tire repair kit, and a jack
Flashlight	Non-latex gloves
Tire traction devices when appropriate	Seasonal equipment
Disposable gloves
Equipment to secure wheelchairs and stretchers
Mirrors, horn, heat, air conditioning, ventilation, lights, and wipers in working order

Each vehicle also needs valid registration, a safety inspection by an ASE-certified mechanic within the last year, a yearly ADA compliance certificate for wheelchair vehicles, an insurance card or ACORD certificate, and incident report forms. After any crash that damages a vehicle, an ASE-certified mechanic must check it before it goes back into service. CareOregon strongly recommends dash cameras facing inward and outward.

Insurance limits are set by your contract. You submit proof before your first trip, at each renewal, and after any change. If your coverage lapses, the brokerage can stop assigning trips and remove trips already on your schedule. If you work in Portland, the city’s own minimums apply too (next section). See NEMT insurance requirements.

For technology, the manual asks for internet and a computer that can receive ride assignments and email attachments, a current standards-compliant web browser, a supported operating system with security updates, login protection on any device with member information, and software that can handle electronic billing. Every driver needs a phone or tablet to receive ride assignments.

Portland permits for Ride to Care providers

The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) licenses private for-hire transportation, including NEMT. Its company and vehicle requirements, updated July 1, 2026, include:

Requirement	Detail
Brokerage contract	New NEMT companies must first secure a contract with the local brokerage
General liability	$1 million per occurrence, $2 million aggregate, from an insurer rated A.M. Best A- or better
Auto liability	At least $500,000 combined single limit, covering scheduled, hired, and non-owned vehicles
Additional insured	“The City of Portland, its Officers, Agents and Employees” on both policies
Vehicle age	Under 15 years, with an exemption process
Mechanical inspection	On PBOT’s form, by an ASE Master Mechanic or Blue Seal shop, no older than 6 months
Wheelchair vehicles	ADA certificate of compliance, inspected every year
Larger vehicles	Vehicles designed for 8 or more passengers register with ODOT’s Motor Carrier Division
New company fees	$262.50 application, $525 company permit, $236.25 per vehicle
Renewal fees	$525 company permit, $189 per vehicle
Review time	Up to 60 days for a new company once every document is in

New drivers must pass PBOT’s NEMT driver training before a driver permit is issued. Questions go to PBOT’s Regulatory Division at 503-823-7483.

How Ride to Care assigns trips

The manual says brokerages assign trips by your stated availability by service area and hours, vehicle types, level of service, rates, and performance. Contracted providers are not guaranteed a specific volume of trips. You must keep enough drivers, vehicles, and dispatch staff for the volume you accept, and tell the brokerage right away when your hours or service area change.

You accept or reject each assignment within the time the brokerage sets, which is shorter for same-day and next-day trips. Acceptable reasons to hand a trip back include:

• The trip is outside your service area or hours.
• You do not run the vehicle type the trip needs, or a vehicle is down for maintenance.
• A driver is sick, on break, or would run past the end of a shift.
• Bad weather, a safety concern, or a lawsuit the member has brought against your company.

Unacceptable reasons include discrimination, accepting only the trips that pay best, and a pattern of last-minute returns. A pattern of returned trips can lead to a corrective action plan with fewer trips or a smaller service area. You may not change pickup times, appointment times, addresses, or vehicle type without the brokerage’s approval, and trips not provided as authorized are not paid.

Ride to Care offers curb-to-curb, door-to-door, and hand-to-hand service. Hospital discharges usually need a full escort from the nurse’s station, with any wheelchair or stretcher you must supply.

Pickup, wait, and no-show rules

The manual and Ride to Care’s Rider’s Guide (January 1, 2026) set these timing rules:

• Wait at pickup. Drivers wait at least 15 minutes after the scheduled pickup time, try to reach the member, and tell dispatch before leaving.
• No early pickups. A driver may not make a member leave before the scheduled time or window.
• Arrival. Members are told the driver should arrive no more than 15 minutes after the pickup time or window, drop them off at least 15 minutes before the appointment, and not more than an hour early.
• Facility hours. No drop-off more than 15 minutes before a facility opens, and pick up within 15 minutes after it closes, unless the member asks otherwise.
• Stops with wait time. Waits at stops such as a pharmacy or a treatment clinic are limited to 15 minutes unless the brokerage approves more.
• Will-call returns. Members who schedule a will-call trip are told a driver will arrive within 60 minutes of their call.
• Member no-shows. A cancellation less than two hours before pickup, or a member not ready within 15 minutes, counts as a no-show. The manual says providers are not held accountable for member no-shows.
• Provider no-shows. A verified failure to arrive needs a full incident report, and a pattern leads to corrective action.

Children 12 and under must ride with an attendant, and the attendant supplies and installs any car seat. Drivers may not install car seats, and you may not bill for an attendant. Under OAR 410-141-3920, neither a CCO nor its transportation providers may bill a member for a ride to covered care.

Billing, audits, and records

Your contract sets your rates. The manual adds rules that shape every payment:

• Rates. A negotiated rate for a trip is approved only if the brokerage authorized it before the trip. Bill the most cost-effective and reasonably direct route.
• Audits. CareOregon requires pre-trip and post-trip verification of 5 percent of all trips. Payment may not be withheld during an audit, but overpayments must be paid back, for example by deduction from a future invoice.
• Credentials. The brokerage warns you before documents expire, and withholds payment only if they are not in by the requested date.
• Records. Keep trip records for at least six years: member, pickup and drop-off places and times, appointment time, mode, driver, trip number, cost, mileage, and vehicle.

See how to bill NEMT brokers for invoice habits that hold up in an audit.

Incidents, grievances, and corrective action

Report any crash, injury, or incident while carrying a member to the brokerage within 24 hours. Injuries, deaths, and abuse allegations need written notice right away. A breach of member information must be reported within 24 hours. Grievance responses are due within three business days, or one business day for serious cases, and the brokerage may ask for dash camera footage.

A corrective action plan comes before suspension in most cases. Grounds for suspension or termination include chronic lateness, return pickups more than 30 minutes late, unsafe vehicles, changing trips without approval, employing a driver with a felony or a sex-related misdemeanor conviction, and letting insurance lapse. If a driver is suspended or disqualified, you can file a written appeal with the brokerage.

Who to contact

Need	Contact
Joining the network, credentialing, driver feedback	Ride Connection Provider Support, 503-528-1751, fax 503-528-1755, providersupport@rideconnection.org
Ride Connection office	9955 NE Glisan St., Portland, OR 97220
Ride to Care member line	503-416-3955 or toll-free 855-321-4899, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays
Ride to Care fax	503-296-2681
Health Share compliance (fraud, waste, and abuse)	503-416-1459
Portland permits	PBOT Regulatory Division, 503-823-7483

Call Ride Connection on a weekday with your company details, fleet list, and the hours and areas you can cover.