Dispatch and operations
What Is a Wait-and-Return Trip in NEMT? When the Driver Stays for the Visit
Overview
A wait-and-return trip is a NEMT round trip where the same driver and vehicle stay at the appointment and take the rider home, instead of leaving and coming back. A few payers pay the wait with code T2007, including Arizona, Indiana, and Medi-Cal, each with limits, and Illinois pays nothing for it. Waiting usually beats a will-call when the visit is short and the clinic is far away.
- On a wait-and-return trip, one driver and one vehicle run both legs, and the van stays at the appointment.
- Federal guidance lets a state pay waiting as its own charge only when staying costs less than leaving, and only after CMS approves a state plan change.
- Where the wait is paid, payers such as Arizona check that the van never moved: same driver, same vehicle, and an unchanged odometer.
- Your driver is usually on the clock while waiting, whether or not the payer pays for it.
- Waiting wins on short visits far from your other work. Leaving wins on long treatments close to base.
What a wait-and-return trip means
A wait-and-return trip is a round trip where the driver drops the rider at the appointment, stays with the vehicle, and drives the same rider home when the visit ends. One driver and one vehicle run both trip legs, and the van does not go anywhere in between.
It is one of three ways to handle the ride home:
| Scheduled return | Will-call | Wait-and-return | |
|---|---|---|---|
| When the ride home starts | At a time set when the trip is booked | When the rider or clinic calls | As soon as the visit ends |
| What the driver does during the visit | Leaves for other trips | Leaves for other trips | Stays at the appointment |
| Timing you must meet | Arrive at the set time | Arrive inside the window after the call | Be ready when the rider comes out |
| Pay for the gap | None | None | Only where the payer pays wait time |
The will-call window is the number to compare against. MTM Health in Virginia gives 45 minutes from the call (handbook approved August 10, 2026), Georgia gives one hour (manual October 1, 2026), and Louisiana Medicaid gives two hours (section 10.4, July 14, 2025). A will-call trip frees the van and accepts that window. A wait-and-return keeps the van close and gives up whatever else it could have done in the meantime.
Billing can differ too. Indiana’s bulletin BT2025119 (August 19, 2025) bills a return after the driver leaves as an additional trip, marked with the XE modifier. It says a trip where the provider stays and waits is a single trip, so its legs are never split with XE.
How payers treat the waiting time
Medicaid pays to move a rider, and the rider is not in the van while the driver waits. So CMS says states generally may not cover long waits as a separate service, though it grants that a long wait is sometimes the most economical way to get a rider home (SMD 23-006, September 28, 2023). A state may build waiting into its trip rates, or pay the wait itself under a state plan amendment when staying costs less than leaving.
Where the wait is paid, it is billed as T2007 in half-hour units, and each payer has its own test for a real wait. Arizona fee-for-service pays nothing when the odometer changes between drop-off and pickup, when two vehicles or drivers split the round trip, or when the clinic is 10 miles away or less (manual revised July 31, 2026). Indiana pays only when the van is parked outside the medical provider on a trip of 50 miles or more one way (module version 6.1). Medi-Cal pays wheelchair and litter vans only for time spent waiting to load the rider (provider manual, page updated August 2020). Illinois does not pay waiting time at all (handbook, March 11, 2024), and WellTrans in Indiana pays only waits it approves in advance, generally on trips over 50 miles (agreement revised October 16, 2025). See NEMT wait time billing for each payer’s full rules and rates, and what an hour of waiting is worth.
Your costs keep running while the payer’s meter is off. If your driver is an employee, time spent staying with the van to make the return trip is work time under federal wage rules (29 CFR 785.15 and 785.16). See NEMT driver pay.
When waiting beats a will-call
The choice comes down to the distance, the visit length, and the will-call window. Here is a hypothetical dispatch call under a 45-minute will-call window, like MTM Health’s in Virginia.
Your driver drops a rider at a specialist’s office about 40 minutes from base, for a follow-up expected to take an hour. If the driver heads back, they reach base with about 20 minutes to spare. When the call comes, the drive back takes another 40 minutes, which uses up most of a 45-minute window before any traffic. Leaving buys 80 minutes of empty driving for 20 free minutes. Waiting costs one idle hour and makes the window easy.
Now flip it. A rider has a four-hour dialysis treatment 10 minutes from base. Leaving costs about 20 empty minutes and frees more than three hours for other trips, and a van nearby can meet any will-call window. Here leaving wins, then a scheduled return or will-call brings the rider home. The dialysis transportation guide shows how to fill that gap.
Ask these questions trip by trip:
- How far is the clinic from your next paid trip? Every mile back and forth is a deadhead mile Medicaid does not pay.
- How long is the visit? A short visit leaves too little time to do anything else.
- Can the van make the will-call window from wherever it would be? If not, waiting may be the only way to stay on time.
- Does the payer pay the wait, and did the broker approve it? Check the distance rule and any cap before you count on it.
- What else would the driver do? Leaving only pays when a paid trip fills the gap.
The rural NEMT guide works through the same choice on long country runs, and the wait time cost calculator puts your own driver and van costs into it.
How to run a wait-and-return trip
- Confirm the trip type before you go. Ask the broker whether the trip is booked or approved as a wait, especially if you plan to bill for it. CareOregon’s manual (version 1.3, February 2024) has drivers wait on trips marked as needing it, such as a pharmacy stop or a visit to a clinic that offers substance abuse treatment.
- Keep one driver and one vehicle. Arizona pays no wait when two vehicles or drivers split the round trip.
- Write down the odometer at drop-off and at pickup. In Arizona the two readings must match.
- Park at the provider. Indiana pays only when the vehicle waits outside the medical provider.
- Record the wait’s start and stop clock times. Indiana wants them on the driver’s ticket, and Medi-Cal wants them in box 19 of the claim or on an attachment.
- Tell dispatch if the visit runs long. CareOregon caps a wait at 15 minutes and wants the brokerage told when a wait will pass that, so it can approve more time or confirm a no-show.
- Bill it as one trip. Arizona puts every trip for one member on one date on a single claim, with the base rate on the first line, mileage on the second, and wait time on the third. Indiana bills a trip where the driver waited as a single trip.
A trip log with columns for the odometer and the wait’s start and stop times covers all of these.
Frequently asked questions
Is a wait-and-return trip the same as a will-call?
No. On a will-call the driver leaves after drop-off, and the ride home has no set time until the rider or clinic calls. Then the van must arrive inside a window, such as 45 minutes with MTM Health in Virginia, one hour in Georgia, or two hours under Louisiana Medicaid. On a wait-and-return trip the driver never leaves, so the ride home starts when the visit ends.
Do I get paid for the time I wait?
Only where your payer pays wait time. Arizona fee-for-service pays $4.59 per half hour from October 1, 2026. Indiana pays $7.43 per half hour in 2026, rising to $7.65 on January 1, 2027, but only past the first 30 minutes on trips of 50 miles or more one way. Medi-Cal fee-for-service pays $11.30 per half hour (rate page updated September 2023) past the first 15 minutes, up to 90 minutes. Illinois lists waiting time as not covered.
Can I bill the wait if the driver leaves during the visit?
No. Arizona does not allow wait time when the odometer changes between drop-off and pickup, or when two vehicles or drivers split the round trip. Indiana pays only when the driver parks outside the medical provider and waits for the member to come back. If the van moves, you have a will-call or a scheduled return, not a wait.
Do I have to pay my driver while they wait?
If your driver is an employee, usually yes. Under federal wage rules, an employee who must wait for the job is "engaged to wait," and that time is work (29 CFR 785.15). The truck driver example in 29 CFR 785.16 says a driver who waits for the return trip while required to look after the employer's property is working. Waiting is off the clock only when you fully relieve the driver, tell them in advance when to be back, and the break is long enough to use as their own.
Who decides that a trip is wait-and-return?
Usually the broker or payer, when it books or approves the trip. WellTrans's Indiana provider agreement (revised October 16, 2025) pays only wait time it pre-authorizes, generally on trips over 50 miles. CareOregon marks the trips where the driver must wait, such as a pharmacy stop, and caps the wait at 15 minutes unless the brokerage approves more.