New Jersey MAV Crew Training in 2027: The MAVO Course, PAT Card, CPR, and Oxygen Rules

New Jersey licenses wheelchair vans as mobility assistance vehicles (MAVs), and the Department of Health’s Office of Emergency Medical Services (OEMS) decides who may staff one. The rule is N.J.A.C. 8:40, readopted effective September 25, 2023 and set to expire September 25, 2030. This page covers the training each crew member needs and the records you keep. Licensing, fees, vehicle measurements, and broker enrollment are in the New Jersey guide.

What every MAV crew member needs

The rule calls anyone who staffs a MAV a crewmember, so these requirements reach every driver and every helper, not only the person behind the wheel:

• Age and license. At least 18 years old, with a valid driver’s license for anyone who drives (N.J.A.C. 8:40-4.1).
• A technician card. A valid PAT technician card, a MAV technician card, or a card from a similar course the Department of Health approved (8:40-5.3(b)).
• CPR. Certification at the professional rescuer or health care provider level (8:40-1.3). If you routinely carry children under 8, add pediatric basic life support to American Heart Association standards (8:40-5.3(b)).
• EMT-Basic for at least one crew member when the van carries oxygen equipment other than the rider’s own (8:40-5.3(c)).
• ID and dress. Identification showing first and last name and your company’s name, and clothing of a similar uniform look. A crew member may not display a training level they have not reached (8:40-4.1).

A MAV runs with one crew member, but a second one must be there at loading or unloading when a wheelchair rider is moved up or down five or more steps, or weighs 200 pounds or more and is moved up or down two or more steps (8:40-5.3(a)). That second person needs the same card, CPR, ID, and age.

The cards are not the whole job. Under 8:40-4.2, every crew member must also know your on-board equipment, your operating procedures, what to do after a crash or incident, your radios or phones, and the rules that apply to them. Teach those in your own orientation from your standard operating procedures manual. OEMS guidance updated May 3, 2024 says MAV technicians carry their CPR card, proof of their certification level, and a photo ID while working.

MAVO, MAV technician, or PAT: which card counts

N.J.A.C. 8:40-5.3 names two cards and their equivalents:

1. PAT technician. A Passenger Assistance Techniques card issued by Transportation Management Associates of Fort Worth, Texas, or a card from a similar course the department approved.
2. MAV technician. A card issued by the Medical Transportation Association of New Jersey, or a card from a similar course the department approved.

New Jersey trainers often sell the course as MAVO training, short for mobility assistance vehicle operator. The crew rule names PAT and MAV technician cards, not MAVO. Assembly bill A4601, introduced March 10, 2026, would make MAVO an official title: the Department of Health would certify mobility assistance vehicle operators who finish an approved program and pass an exam the department approves, keep a register of applicants, and could suspend or revoke a certification. The bill would take effect on the first day of the sixth month after it becomes law. On October 5, 2026 the Assembly Health Committee reported it with amendments and sent it to the Assembly Public Safety and Preparedness Committee. It is not law, so the technician cards in N.J.A.C. 8:40 still decide who may ride.

School work names one card in particular. Under N.J.S.A. 18A:39-20.1(b), as amended October 4, 2024, a school board may authorize “a person certified as a mobility assistance vehicle technician” to carry a student with medical needs in a MAV. If you want those routes, ask the executive county superintendent whether a PAT card counts before you staff one, and see New Jersey school transportation contracts.

What an approved course must include

Appendix B of N.J.A.C. 8:40 sets the standard any PAT or MAV technician course must meet, and only cards from courses the department approved let someone serve on a MAV. The course must:

• Run at least 8 hours, with every student attending all of it and signing in at the start and out at the end.
• Mix classroom and hands-on training, with no more than six students per instructor in the hands-on part.
• End with two tests: a multiple-choice final exam covering every objective, and a skills evaluation of every hands-on skill on the list.
• Be filed with OEMS in advance. The schedule and curriculum go to OEMS at least 30 days before the course, the exam must be ready for OEMS review by then, and OEMS may audit a class without notice.
• Keep records for 10 years, including rosters and the original sign-in sheets.
• Issue a card showing the instructor’s original signature, the student’s printed name and original signature, the course location, and the date completed.

The objectives cover the whole job:

• The rules. The role of a MAV technician, OEMS and N.J.A.C. 8:40, basic Medicaid standards, OSHA standards, and how to report an unusual occurrence.
• Riders. Common conditions such as heart and breathing problems, diabetes, dialysis, amputation, hearing or vision loss, and children with special needs, plus medical emergencies, calling 911, and preparing a rider for weather and trip length.
• Transfers. Seven techniques, from unassisted and standing pivot transfers to sliding boards and help for a rider who cannot see, along with canes, crutches, walkers, braces, and guide dogs.
• Wheelchairs and stairs. Folding and inspecting chairs, doorways, single and multiple steps with and without help, extra help for riders of 200 pounds or more, and uneven ground.
• The vehicle. Hydraulic lifts and their manual backup, lift failures, manual ramps, the four-point wheelchair tie-down and the three-point occupant belt, and step stools.
• Injury risks. Eleven common causes of rider injuries, such as riding the lift with the rider, leaving a rider alone, and skipping the vehicle check before a trip.

The wheelchair securement guide goes deeper on the tie-down steps the skills test checks.

How to check a course before you pay

1. Ask how the course meets Appendix B. Get the hours, the hands-on ratio, and whether it ends with a written exam and a skills test. A class shorter than 8 hours falls short.
2. Ask for proof of department approval, then confirm it with OEMS at 609-633-7777 or its licensing email, OEMSAgencyLic@doh.nj.gov.
3. Check the card for the instructor’s original signature, the student’s printed name and signature, the location, and the completion date.
4. Put the card in the file, not a letter. In a 2017 enforcement action, OEMS cited a MAV company because a crew member had only a temporary letter on file instead of a current MAV technician card.
5. Track expiration dates. The rule sets no renewal cycle for technician cards, but it requires a valid one, so retrain before any date printed on the card. Use the training log template to track each renewal.

CPR cards the Office of EMS accepts

New Jersey defines CPR certification as a card at the professional rescuer or health care provider level from the American Heart Association, the American Red Cross, the National Safety Council, or another group the department finds follows American Heart Association guidelines. The OEMS list, updated May 3, 2024, names these cards:

Training agency	Card that counts
American Heart Association	Basic Life Support (BLS)
American Red Cross	Professional Rescuer, BLS, CPR/AED for Professional Rescuers, or Lifeguarding/First Aid/CPR/AED
National Safety Council	Basic Life Support for Health Care and Professional Rescuers
American Safety and Health Institute	Professional Rescuer or BLS
AAOS/ACEP Emergency Care and Safety Institute	Healthcare Provider
EMS Safety	BLS for Healthcare Providers Professional
American Aquatics and Safety Training	CPR/AED
Military Training Network	Professional Rescuer

The same guidance sets the rules for the class. It must be instructor-led, with a skills check and a written exam, and cover one- and two-rescuer CPR for infants, children, and adults, a bag-valve mask, and an automated external defibrillator. OEMS accepts eCards, but not photocopies, letters of participation from instructors, or courses taught only online. Layperson CPR courses for the general public are not on the list. The CPR requirements guide covers renewals and course formats in other states.

Oxygen: when the crew needs an EMT

A rider may bring their own portable oxygen on a MAV without an EMT on board, as long as the crew never has to monitor, regulate, or control it (N.J.A.C. 8:40-5.2(c)). If your van carries oxygen equipment of its own, at least one crew member must hold EMT-Basic and CPR certification (8:40-5.3(c) and 5.5(a)). So staff an EMT on any trip at Modivcare’s wheelchair-with-oxygen level, which its New Jersey facilities page (as of October 2026) uses for riders whose oxygen the transportation company provides and monitors. The oxygen transport guide covers the equipment and securing cylinders.

Train every crew member to recognize riders a MAV may never carry: anyone who must lie flat, needs constant attendance or suctioning, needs behavioral restraints, or uses an IV or ventilator that is not a self-sufficient home device the crew never touches (8:40-5.2(b)).

Crew files, record keeping, and fines

N.J.A.C. 8:40-3.8 requires a personnel file for each crew member with:

• Name and home address.
• A copy of a valid driver’s license.
• A copy of a photo ID (the license can serve).
• A copy of the PAT technician, MAV technician, or EMT-Basic card.
• A copy of the CPR card.

Keep the files at your principal place of business where staff can reach them quickly, and hand them to department staff on demand. Records may be kept on a computer if you have safeguards against tampering and a backup, written into your operating procedures manual (8:40-3.9(a)). Keep them at least five years (8:40-3.9(c)). The manual itself must cover your crew’s duty to have training credentials available (8:40-3.5), with a copy at every location where a van is garaged. The driver file checklist lays out a file you can reuse.

Missing cards cost money. Under 8:40-7.2(e), a violation of any rule on crew requirements, duties, training, or certification carries a penalty of $1,000 per violation per day, and each day it stays uncorrected counts as a new violation (8:40-7.2(f)). Other violations may draw $250 per violation per day; in the 2017 case, the missing cards in personnel files drew $250. Fraudulent credentials or tampered records carry $2,500 per violation and can lead to revocation, and knowingly vouching for a false document is grounds to refuse or revoke your license (8:40-3.8(c)).

Broker training on top of the state card

The state card is the minimum to ride. As of October 2026, Modivcare’s provider requirements list a PASS wheelchair certificate, first aid and CPR, and a defensive driving certificate for each driver, along with a drug screen, a motor vehicle report, and a background check. PASS certification is a different course from the PAT card named in the rule, so ask Modivcare in writing whether your crew’s PAT or MAV technician card meets its passenger assistance line before you pay for both.

The New Jersey guide lists the 20 hours of driver training the state’s bid for the next broker contract adds. For a training plan that covers both the state card and broker courses in a new hire’s first week, see NEMT driver training.