Conferees back $600,000 for volunteer driver recruitment, call for working group on nonemergency Medicaid transport

Conferees on the transportation bill approved a five‑part approach to strengthen demand‑response transportation: $600,000 in one‑time transportation funds for grants to hire coordinators to recruit and retain volunteer drivers; reports from the Agency of Transportation and the Department of Vermont Health Access (DVHA) on Medicaid nonemergency transportation; a review of background‑check barriers; publicity and outreach through DMV; and a working group convened by the AOT secretary, in consultation with DVHA, to improve coordination between health care and transportation services.

Conferees emphasized that volunteer drivers are critical in rural areas and that participation dropped during the pandemic. One conferee said there were about 300 volunteer drivers statewide in early 2019, that number fell sharply during COVID and has only partially recovered. Conferees said the current contract for NEMT is in its final year and that program rebids and Medicaid enrollment changes could affect operational arrangements.

Discussion highlighted friction between public transit agencies, AOT and DVHA around background checks, advertising, and operational coordination. Conferees said the statute language is intended to get the parties to the table and that the package is an attempt to start practical improvements rather than immediate system overhaul.

Outcome: conferees approved the funding proposal and directed the AOT and DVHA reporting and the convening of a working group to pursue operational solutions, including whether some costs can be covered through Medicaid in communities with substantial Medicaid populations.

Next steps: AOT and DVHA will produce the directed reports, stakeholders will be invited to the working group, and conferees said they expect the issues to require ongoing attention beyond the current session.