Minnesota NEMT Mileage Rates Rise in October 2026 to $1.92 for Wheelchair Rides

On October 1, 2026, the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) raised the mileage it pays for fee-for-service lift or ramp, protected, and stretcher rides in its quarterly fuel adjustment. Its State-Administered Transportation rate page, revised October 6, 2026, lists $1.92 a mile for wheelchair rides in a lift or ramp vehicle, up from $1.80. Protected and stretcher rides rose to $2.71 a loaded mile, up from $2.54. DHS told providers in an October 12, 2026 bulletin that it had updated the fuel adjuster rates for October 1.

Minnesota NEMT rates from October 1, 2026

From October 1, DHS pays $1.92 a mile for lift or ramp rides and $2.71 for protected and stretcher rides, on top of unchanged base rates. You bill Minnesota Health Care Programs (MHCP) directly for these three modes.

Ride	Base per trip	Per mile from Oct. 1	Per mile from July 1
Lift or ramp (mode 5)	$19.80	$1.92	$1.80
Protected (mode 6)	$75.00	$2.71	$2.54
Stretcher (mode 7)	$60.00	$2.71	$2.54

• Codes. Mileage is S0209 for lift or ramp rides, S0215 UA for protected rides, and T2049 for stretcher rides. The base codes are A0130, T2003 UA, and T2005.
• Extra stretcher attendant. Still $9.00 a trip (T2001), for mode 7 only.
• Protected rides. The $75.00 base still must include an attendant. See protected transport.
• Rural and super rural add-ons. They still apply, based on the ZIP code where the rider lives.
• Loaded miles only. Mileage starts with the first mile the rider is in the vehicle, by the most direct route.

A 20-mile urban stretcher trip now pays $114.20 ($60.00 plus 20 × $2.71), $3.40 more than at the July rate. A 12-mile urban wheelchair trip pays $42.84, up $1.44.

Unassisted and assisted rides (modes 3 and 4) went up too. DHS’s rate page for county, tribal, MTM, and SmartLink rides, revised October 1, 2026, lists $1.61 a mile from October 1, up from $1.51. Counties, tribes, and coordinators bill DHS for those rides and pay you under your contract.

Why the rates went up

The fuel rule is in Minnesota Statutes 256B.0625, subdivision 17. On the first day of each calendar quarter when gas costs more than $3.00 a gallon, DHS moves NEMT mileage rates 1 percent for every 10 cents above or below $3.00. It uses the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s average price for all grades of gasoline in Minnesota. That weekly average ran from $4.15 to $4.42 a gallon in September 2026.

The October rates are about 13 percent above the statute mileage of $1.70 for lift or ramp rides and $2.40 for protected and stretcher rides. The fuel rule, the statute rates, and the rural add-ons all end when DHS starts its new statewide or regional NEMT administrator. DHS must give counties and health plans six months of notice first (see the administrator delay).

What to do now

1. Bill October trips at the new rates. Update the per-mile charge for S0209, S0215 UA, and T2049 for dates of service from October 1, 2026.
2. Check the October claims you already sent. DHS revised its rate page on October 6, so claims you sent before then may show the July rates. If any paid at the July rate, call the MHCP Provider Resource Center at 651-431-2700 or 800-366-5411 and ask whether to send replacement claims. After the April 2026 change, PrimeWest Health asked its providers to resubmit mode 4 mileage claims billed at the old rate as replacement claims, with the original claim number and the billed amount changed to the new rate. See how to correct a claim.
3. Ask your other payers. MTM Health, SmartLink, counties, and health plans pay you under your contract, so ask whether they pass the fuel adjustment on. State law requires health plans to provide a fuel adjustment on NEMT rates when fuel tops $3 a gallon (subdivision 18h), but it does not set the amount.
4. Check the rate page again in January. If gas stays above $3.00 a gallon, the next adjustment falls on January 1, 2027.

The Minnesota NEMT rates guide has every mode’s rates and the rural add-ons, and the Minnesota state guide covers enrollment.