Connecticut HB 5356: AN ACT CONCERNING NONEMERGENCY MEDICAL TRANSPORTATION FOR MEDICAL ASSISTANCE RECIPIENTS.

Bill Text

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General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 5356
February Session, 2026

AN ACT CONCERNING NONEMERGENCY MEDICAL
TRANSPORTATION FOR MEDICAL ASSISTANCE RECIPIENTS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:

Section 1. Subsection (a) of section 17b-276 of the general statutes is 1
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2
2026): 3
(a) The Commissioner of Social Services shall identify geographic 4
areas of the state where competitive bidding for nonemergency 5
transportation services provided to medical assistance recipients to 6
access covered medical services would result in cost savings to the state. 7
For the identified areas, the Commissioner of Social Services, in 8
consultation with the Commissioner of Transportation, the 9
Commissioner of Public Health and the Secretary of the Office of Policy 10
and Management, shall purchase such nonemergency transportation 11
services through a competitive bidding process. Any transportation 12
providers awarded a contract or subcontract for the direct provision of 13
such services shall meet state licensure or certification requirements and 14
the nonemergency transportation requirements established by the 15
Department of Social Services, and shall provide the most cost effective 16
transportation service, provided (1) any contractor awarded a contract 17
solely for coordinating such transportation services shall not be required 18
to meet such licensure or certification requirements, [and provided] (2) 19
the first such contracts for the purchase of such services shall not exceed 20

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one year, and (3) any driver providing services under such contract or 21
subcontract who is operating under the provisions of subdivision (3) of 22
subsection (e) of section 14-44, shall be deemed to have met the 23
requirements prescribed in this subsection for a period not to exceed 24
ninety days in the aggregate. Prior to awarding a contract pursuant to 25
this section, the Commissioner of Social Services shall consider the effect 26
of the contract on the emergency ambulance primary service areas and 27
volunteer ambulance services affected by the contract. The 28
commissioner may limit the geographic areas to be served by a 29
contractor and may limit the amount of services to be performed by a 30
contractor. The commissioner may operate one or more pilot programs 31
prior to state-wide operation of a competitive bidding program for 32
nonemergency transportation services. By enrolling in the Medicaid 33
program or participating in the competitively bid contract for 34
nonemergency transportation services, providers of nonemergency 35
transportation services agree to offer to recipients of medical assistance 36
all types or levels of transportation services for which they are licensed 37
or certified. Effective October 1, 1991, payment for such services shall be 38
made only for services provided to an eligible recipient who is actually 39
transported. A contract entered into pursuant to this section may 40
include services provided by another state agency. Notwithstanding 41
any provision of the general statutes, a contract entered into pursuant 42
to this section shall establish the rates to be paid for the transportation 43
services provided under the contract. The Commissioner of Social 44
Services shall, at least annually, (A) review such rates, (B) ensure such 45
rates are adequate to provide a pool of nonemergency medical 46
transportation drivers to provide Medicaid recipients access to such 47
transportation services, and (C) ensure such rates are included in each 48
contract. A contract entered into pursuant to this section may include 49
services provided by another state agency and shall supersede any 50
conflicting provisions of the regulations of Connecticut state agencies 51
pertaining to medical transportation services. Any contractor awarded 52
a contract for coordinating nonemergency transportation services for 53
medical assistance recipients, who also coordinates transportation 54
services for nonmedical assistance recipients, shall disclose to any 55

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transportation provider, with whom it subcontracts to provide 56
nonemergency transportation services under this section, the source of 57
payment at the time the service is requested. 58
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:

Section 1 July 1, 2026 17b-276(a)

Statement of Legislative Commissioners:
The title was changed and the provisions of Subsec. (a)(3) were rewritten
for clarity.

HS Joint Favorable Subst. -LCO