# Meridian Michigan Transportation: How SafeRide Books Meridian Rides and How to Get the Trips

Canonical URL: https://nemtguide.com/health-plans/meridian-michigan/ · Updated 2026-09-30

Meridian, the Centene Medicaid plan in Michigan, has sent its non-emergency rides to SafeRide Health since May 1, 2024. Members book with SafeRide at 877-841-1356 at least 72 hours ahead, or ask for gas mileage or bus tokens instead. Since October 1, 2024, Meridian has covered 44 Lower Peninsula counties. To carry Meridian members, your company joins SafeRide's network and passes its credentialing.

- SafeRide Health books Meridian's Medicaid rides in Michigan, so a SafeRide agreement is the way to Meridian trips.
- Meridian members book at least 72 hours ahead and can book up to six weeks out, which suits a standing dialysis schedule.
- Since October 1, 2024, Meridian covers 44 Lower Peninsula counties, down from all 68, and none in the north or the Lansing area.
- In 16 West Michigan and Detroit-area counties, Priority Health Choice also uses SafeRide, so one agreement reaches both plans there.
- Family drivers can be paid gas mileage once they register with SafeRide, so some riders who could sit in your sedan go with family instead.

## Meridian (Michigan) rides at a glance

| Fact | Details |
| --- | --- |
| Who books the ride | SafeRide Health, since May 1, 2024. Its line for Meridian members is 877-841-1356, open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. |
| Other member lines | Meridian Transportation Services, 800-821-9369 (TTY 711), and Member Services, 888-437-0606, option 3 |
| Booking notice | 72 hours (3 calendar days) for sedan and public transit rides, per MDHHS in May 2026. Rides can be booked up to six weeks ahead. |
| Same-day rides | For urgent non-emergency appointments. Members call Member Services for help with same-day and next-day trips. |
| Where Meridian covers rides | 44 Lower Peninsula counties since October 1, 2024. Not the Upper Peninsula, the 21 northern Lower Peninsula counties, or Clinton, Eaton, and Ingham. |
| Members | 399,467 in Medicaid and 113,006 in the Healthy Michigan Plan on July 1, 2024, the most of any Michigan plan in each (CMS), before the county change |
| Family drivers | Paid gas mileage after registering with SafeRide at least five business days before asking for a ride, and only for rides booked with SafeRide first |
| Riders 12 to 17 | May ride without an adult only when a guardian's Michigan Medicaid Minor Consent Form is on file at SafeRide |
| How to get the trips | Register your vehicles with LARA or MDOT, then apply on SafeRide's NEMT provider page and pass its company, driver, and vehicle checks |

Meridian Health Plan of Michigan, a Centene company, does not dispatch rides. Since May 1, 2024, SafeRide Health has booked the non-emergency rides for Meridian's Medicaid and Healthy Michigan Plan members, and for Wellcare by Meridian members too. So the road to Meridian work runs through SafeRide's network, and only in the 44 counties Meridian now serves. Michigan's statewide rules, from vehicle registration to CHAMPS, are in the [Michigan guide](https://nemtguide.com/states/michigan/).

## Who books Meridian rides in Michigan

The MDHHS list of each health plan's ride vendor, revised May 14, 2026, names SafeRide for Meridian. A Meridian member can reach the ride desk three ways:

- **SafeRide's Meridian line**, 877-841-1356, open around the clock. It books sedan rides, public transit, and gas mileage trips.
- **Meridian Transportation Services**, 800-821-9369 (TTY 711). The member handbook effective October 1, 2025 lists it for all non-emergency rides, 365 days a year. Meridian's provider manual, revised March 2026, gives this line, or Member Services, to members, their primary care providers, and Meridian staff who arrange a ride.
- **Member Services**, 888-437-0606, option 3.

SafeRide's Meridian page covers Wellcare by Meridian members from the same start date, including Wellcare Meridian Dual Align, a plan that combines Medicare and Michigan Medicaid for [dual eligible](https://nemtguide.com/glossary/dual-eligible/) members.

### How far ahead Meridian members book

Meridian asks for more [advance notice](https://nemtguide.com/glossary/advance-notice/) than some other Michigan plans, and it lets members book up to six weeks out:

| Situation | Meridian's rule |
|---|---|
| Sedan or public transit ride | At least 72 hours, or 3 calendar days |
| Farthest ahead a ride can be booked | Six weeks |
| Next-day appointment | Call SafeRide at 877-841-1356 as soon as possible |
| Urgent non-emergency appointment | Same-day ride on request, with Member Services helping |
| Member or individual driver signing up with SafeRide | At least five business days before asking for a ride |
| Meals or lodging on a long trip | Booked with SafeRide at least 72 hours before the date of service |

The six-week window matters if you carry dialysis patients. A three-day chair schedule can be placed well ahead, so ask SafeRide how it releases those repeat trips to you. See [dialysis transportation](https://nemtguide.com/guides/dialysis-transportation/) and [standing orders](https://nemtguide.com/guides/nemt-standing-orders/).

For same-day and next-day trips, MDHHS's list says Meridian works with members and transportation providers to get them to care, especially maternity care. A member who often has urgent trips and cannot use mileage may get a monthly bus pass if they live on a transit route.

## Where Meridian covers rides

Meridian's Medicaid contract with MDHHS began October 1, 2024 and runs through September 30, 2029, with three optional one-year extensions. MDHHS awarded it six of the state's ten Prosperity Regions: West Michigan, East Central, East, Southwest, Southeast, and Detroit Metro. Meridian's map shows the result:

| Status since October 1, 2024 | Counties |
|---|---|
| Covered (44) | Allegan, Arenac, Barry, Bay, Berrien, Branch, Calhoun, Cass, Clare, Genesee, Gladwin, Gratiot, Hillsdale, Huron, Ionia, Isabella, Jackson, Kalamazoo, Kent, Lake, Lapeer, Lenawee, Livingston, Macomb, Mason, Mecosta, Midland, Monroe, Montcalm, Muskegon, Newaygo, Oakland, Oceana, Osceola, Ottawa, Saginaw, Sanilac, Shiawassee, St. Clair, St. Joseph, Tuscola, Van Buren, Washtenaw, Wayne |
| No longer covered (24) | Alcona, Alpena, Antrim, Benzie, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, Crawford, Emmet, Grand Traverse, Iosco, Kalkaska, Leelanau, Manistee, Missaukee, Montmorency, Ogemaw, Oscoda, Otsego, Presque Isle, Roscommon, Wexford, plus Clinton, Eaton, and Ingham |
| Not covered | The 15 Upper Peninsula counties |

Before that date, CMS's 2024 enrollment report listed Meridian in all 68 Lower Peninsula counties. On July 1, 2024 it counted 399,467 Meridian members in Michigan's Medicaid program and 113,006 in the Healthy Michigan Plan, more than any other plan in either program. If you carried Meridian riders around Traverse City, Alpena, or Lansing, those members now ride under other plans.

Sixteen of Meridian's counties also have Priority Health Choice, the only other Michigan Medicaid plan that uses SafeRide: Allegan, Barry, Ionia, Kent, Lake, Mason, Mecosta, Montcalm, Muskegon, Newaygo, Oceana, Osceola, and Ottawa, plus Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb. There, one SafeRide agreement can bring you riders from both plans. See [Priority Health Medicaid transportation](https://nemtguide.com/health-plans/priority-health-medicaid/).

## What Meridian rides cover and who can ride along

Meridian's NEMT page, updated July 2, 2026, and its handbook list free rides to doctor and lab visits, non-emergency hospital care, prescription pickups, and dental care. They also list ongoing care: dialysis, chemotherapy, substance use disorder treatment, and physical, speech, and occupational therapy. Members in the Maternal Infant Health Program also get rides to WIC, oral health, mental health treatment, and childbirth and parenting classes. The provider manual adds medical equipment supplies and says rides go to Meridian's participating providers, or to other providers when Meridian directs it.

Meridian's provider manual says each member is assigned the most appropriate and cost-effective ride in the network, the [least costly mode](https://nemtguide.com/glossary/least-costly-mode/) that fits. That can be a bus token, gas mileage, or a sedan. Members who need wheelchair space or oxygen are told to book as early as possible so they are matched with the right vendor, and that is where a van company fits.

Who may ride with the member:

- A parent or legal guardian of a minor, or of a member who cannot act alone.
- Other family members, such as siblings, when allowed.
- One extra adult when the member needs help, or an adult with a minor.
- A rider 12 to 17 alone only after the legal guardian files SafeRide's Michigan Medicaid Minor Consent Form. SafeRide sets up unescorted trips only once the form is on file.

If a teenager is waiting alone and your trip sheet shows no consent, call SafeRide before you load. See [children in NEMT](https://nemtguide.com/guides/children-in-nemt/) and [escorts and caregivers](https://nemtguide.com/guides/escorts-and-caregivers/).

## How your company gets Meridian trips

1. **Check your counties.** Match where you drive to the 44-county list. Ask the dialysis units, clinics, and pharmacies you serve how many of their patients have Meridian.
2. **Register your vehicles.** Michigan's limousine act covers for-hire vehicles with 8 or fewer seats, driver included, and LARA registers them. Vehicles with 9 or more seats need an MDOT authority under the Motor Bus Transportation Act. Fees and insurance minimums are in the [Michigan guide](https://nemtguide.com/states/michigan/).
3. **Apply to SafeRide.** Fill out the form on SafeRide's NEMT provider page with a real NPI, pick Michigan and each county you serve, and finish within 30 days, or you start over.
4. **Pass credentialing.** SafeRide checks your insurance, with SafeRide as additional insured, and every driver and vehicle file. The full list is on the [SafeRide Health page](https://nemtguide.com/brokers/saferide-health/).
5. **Ask for Meridian volume.** Ask your network vendor manager which Meridian counties and [levels of service](https://nemtguide.com/glossary/level-of-service/) are short.

Once you are in, SafeRide measures response, acceptance, on-time rate, complaints, and trips handed back. For how SafeRide works across Michigan, see SafeRide in Michigan.

## Family drivers and gas mileage

Some Meridian rides never reach a van, because a member or someone they know can drive and be paid [mileage reimbursement](https://nemtguide.com/glossary/mileage-reimbursement/). SafeRide runs it for Meridian, with these rules:

- The driver registers through SafeRide's online portal or a paper packet, at least five business days before asking for a ride. A ride given on or after May 1, 2024 without driver details on file is not paid.
- The member books every mileage ride with SafeRide before the trip and gets a ride ID.
- The health care office signs each ride on the Michigan Gas Reimbursement Form, and only the driver named at booking is paid.
- A non-member driver attests to no federal program exclusion, a valid license, no controlled substance felony after August 21, 1996, and, in the past two years, no more than two moving violations and no drunk or impaired driving conviction.

Long trips can add meals and lodging. Since August 1, 2025, SafeRide pays them only when booked before the date of service. Meridian's flyer listed maximums of $8.50 for breakfast, $19 for lunch or dinner, and $75 for lodging as of January 1, 2024.

## When a Meridian ride runs late

MDHHS's list tells a member whose sedan has not arrived, and who is at risk of missing an appointment, to call SafeRide at 877-841-1356. Rescheduling help and complaints go to Member Services at 888-437-0606. Meridian's entry on that list says transportation complaints are usually resolved the same day, and a formal grievance that is not follows a 15-day timeline.

Meridian's provider manual also backs your drivers. SafeRide reports abuse of the service to Meridian, which investigates and can withhold rides from the member. Its examples include booking rides for non-medical reasons and abusive behavior toward the transportation provider. Write up every incident the day it happens and send it to SafeRide. See [difficult NEMT passengers](https://nemtguide.com/guides/difficult-nemt-passengers/).

## Who to call

| For | Contact |
|---|---|
| Booking or checking a Meridian ride | SafeRide, 877-841-1356, 24 hours a day |
| Meridian's own ride line | Meridian Transportation Services, 800-821-9369 (TTY 711) |
| Same-day help, complaints, rescheduling | Meridian Member Services, 888-437-0606 (option 3 for rides) |
| Mileage driver registration | meridian_driver@saferidehealth.com or 877-841-1356 |
| Meals and lodging | 833-944-0517, weekdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., or meridian_travel@saferidehealth.com |
| Joining SafeRide's network | team@saferidehealth.com or 855-955-7433 |

## Frequently asked questions

### What is the Meridian Michigan transportation phone number?

SafeRide Health books Meridian rides at 877-841-1356, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Meridian's member handbook also lists Meridian Transportation Services at 800-821-9369 (TTY 711), and members can call Member Services at 888-437-0606 and choose option 3 for transportation. The same Member Services line helps with same-day and next-day trips.

### Does Meridian use SafeRide or Modivcare in Michigan?

SafeRide Health. SafeRide took over Meridian's Medicaid and Wellcare by Meridian rides in Michigan on May 1, 2024, and the MDHHS health plan ride list revised May 14, 2026 still names SafeRide for Meridian. Modivcare books rides for McLaren Health Plan and for members without a health plan in Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb counties.

### How far ahead do Meridian members have to book a ride?

At least 72 hours before the trip for a sedan or public transit ride. Members can book as far as six weeks ahead, and they can ask for a same-day ride to an urgent non-emergency appointment. Members and the individual drivers who take them for gas mileage register with SafeRide at least five business days before asking for a ride.

### How do I become a transportation provider for Meridian in Michigan?

Join SafeRide Health's network, because Meridian has no separate ride network of its own. Register your vehicles with the state first: LARA for vehicles with 8 or fewer seats, driver included, and MDOT for 9 or more. Then fill out the signup form on SafeRide's NEMT provider page, choose Michigan and your counties, and send your insurance, driver, and vehicle files for credentialing.

### Which Michigan counties does Meridian cover?

Since October 1, 2024, Meridian covers Medicaid members in 44 Lower Peninsula counties, from Mason, Lake, Osceola, Clare, Gladwin, Arenac, and Huron south to the Indiana and Ohio lines. It does not cover the Upper Peninsula, the 21 counties north of that line, or Clinton, Eaton, and Ingham counties around Lansing.

### Can a family member get paid to drive a Meridian member?

Yes, through SafeRide's gas mileage reimbursement program for Meridian. The driver registers with SafeRide, the member books the ride with SafeRide before the trip, and the health care office signs each ride on the Michigan Gas Reimbursement Form. Only the driver named when the ride was booked is paid, and SafeRide asks drivers to allow 14 days before calling about payment.

## Official resources

- [SafeRide Health: Join the NEMT network (signup form)](https://www.saferidehealth.com/what-to-expect-nemt-provider)
- [Meridian (Michigan): Non-Emergency Medical Transportation page and forms](https://www.mimeridian.com/members/medicaid/find-a-provider/nemt-info.html)
- [SafeRide Health: Meridian driver registration, mileage, and meals and lodging](https://www.saferidehealth.com/meridian)
- [Meridian (Michigan): Medicaid Provider Manual (transportation in section G)](https://www.mimeridian.com/content/dam/centene/meridian/mi/pdf/PSM-MI-Provider-Manual.pdf)
- [MDHHS: Every Michigan health plan's ride vendor and booking rules](https://www.michigan.gov/mdhhs/-/media/Project/Websites/mdhhs/Assistance-Programs/Medicaid-BPHASA/Other-Prov-Specific-Page-Docs/MHP-NEMT-Contact-and-Process.pdf)
- [MDOT: Which law regulates your vehicle](https://www.michigan.gov/mdot/about/faqs/passenger-transportation/bus-and-limousine)