[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3586 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3586

To provide reimbursement under the Medicaid program to individuals and 
entities that provide voluntary non-emergency medical transportation to 
     Medicaid beneficiaries for expenses related to no-load travel.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 20, 2012

Mr. Franken (for himself and Mr. Leahy) introduced the following bill; 
     which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide reimbursement under the Medicaid program to individuals and 
entities that provide voluntary non-emergency medical transportation to 
     Medicaid beneficiaries for expenses related to no-load travel.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Recruiting Individuals to Drive Our 
Elders Act of 2012'' or the ``RIDE Act of 2012''.

SEC. 2. REIMBURSEMENT FOR NO-LOAD TRAVEL COSTS INCURRED BY VOLUNTEERS 
              PROVIDING NON-EMERGENCY MEDICAL TRANSPORTATION TO 
              MEDICAID BENEFICIARIES.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall publish 
an interim final rule to revise the Medicaid transportation regulations 
at sections 431.53 and 440.170 of title 42, Code of Federal 
Regulations, as necessary, to allow a State plan for medical assistance 
under title XIX of the Social Security Act to provide, at the option of 
the State, reimbursement for costs attributable to providing no-load 
volunteer travel services to individuals eligible for medical 
assistance under the State plan who require transportation to receive 
non-emergency medical treatment.
    (b) No-Load Volunteer Travel Service.--For purposes of subsection 
(a), the term ``no-load volunteer travel service'' means travel 
services that--
            (1) are provided by a person who, as determined by a State, 
        local, or tribal government, provides such services on a 
        volunteer basis (referred to in this subsection as a 
        ``volunteer''); and
            (2) are necessary for the volunteer to--
                    (A) travel from the originating location of the 
                volunteer to the location of an individual who is 
                eligible for medical assistance under the State 
                Medicaid plan and requires transportation to receive 
                non-emergency medical treatment (including, for 
                purposes of an individual who requested transportation 
                to receive non-emergency medical treatment and 
                subsequently refused such transportation or was not 
                present at the requested pick-up location, any travel 
                that is necessary for the volunteer to return to their 
                originating location);
                    (B) for purposes of an individual who has been 
                provided transportation by the volunteer to receive 
                non-emergency medical treatment and is required to 
                remain at the treatment location overnight or for an 
                extended period of time (as determined appropriate by a 
                State, local, or tribal government), return to the 
                originating location of the volunteer and, following 
                the completion of such treatment, travel back to the 
                treatment location; and
                    (C) following any transportation that is necessary 
                to return an individual who has received non-emergency 
                medical treatment to their pick-up location, return to 
                the originating location of the volunteer.
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