Table 1 Evidence Table
Author, Date, ID | Study Design | Sample Size | Enrolled Population | Intervention | Includes non-medical transportation? | Outcomes Measured | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Andersen, 2007 [19] | Observational, pre-post | Pre = 61 Post = 61 | Urban HIV positive women 82% on Medicaid 91% African American | 1–800 phone number to call for free, van ride to doctor’s office | No | Utilization (self-report number of visits, self-report number of missed opportunities) | No change in self-reported overall HIV clinic visits, but decreased self-report of missed appointments from 6 months prior to the intervention(mean 1.92 vs 0.72) |
Bryan, 1991 [20] | Observational, pre-post with control | Intervention = 53 Control = 52 | Patients who received cancer care and primary care at Wishard Hospital Mean age = 63 7% African American | Both groups received a mailing describing resources to assist with transportation. The intervention group got in addition a telephone consultation to address possible solutions to transportation problems | No | Utilization (missed appointments as measured by electronic health record) | Missed clinic appointments Intervention pre = 23.7%; post = 23.6%; Control pre = 25.5%, post = 39.9% |
Chaiyachati, 2018 [21] | Controlled clinical trial | 786 (In 2 practices) Intervention = 394 Control = 392 | Medicaid adults Mean age = 46 95% African American | Offered rideshare for free transport to clinic | No | Utilization (appointments kept as measured by electronic health record) 7 day or 30-day Emergency Department visits Costs | Missed appointments intervention = 36.5%, control = 36.5%; 7 day ED visits intervention = 2%, control = 1%; mean cost = $14 |
Chaiyachati, 2018 [22] | Observational Controlled before-and-after | 506 (in 2 practices) Intervention = 194 Control = 312 | Medicaid adults Mean age = 47 97% African American | Offered rideshare for free transport to clinic | No | Utilization (appointments kept as measured by electronic health record) | Appoints kept intervention pre = 54%, post = 68%; control pre = 60%, post = 51% |
Ford, 2019 [23] | RCT | 34 Intervention = 29 Control = 5 Participants in 4 primary care practices | Adults greater or equal to 64, not high utilizers and no car access Mean age = 80 100% white | $2000 cash given to clinic to arrange transportation | No | Patient-perceived ease of appointment, cost | Equivalent annual cost per older, socio-disadvantaged older patient without access to a car was lowest in practice with call-stacking system aimed to develop closer links with a community transport provider |
Kim, 2009 [24] | Observational Controlled before-and-after |  > 50,000 | Children with asthma, adults under 65 with DM Medicaid No details of population reported | Transportation brokerage services (profit or non-profit organizations who manage nonemergency medical transportation on a capitated basis) | No | Health, cost, use of transportation services | Statistically significant decreases in monthly NEMT expenditures per person, $18 decrease in mean monthly expenditure per person for both patient groups; decrease in ambulatory care sensitive conditions in diabetics |
Marcus, 1992 [25] | RCT | 2044 | Women with abnormal cervical cytology 79% < age 45 28% African American 41% Hispanic | Bus tickets mailed to women with note that follow-up was needed for cervical cytology result | No | Loss to follow-up | Transportation incentives had significant positive impact on return rates (adjusted odds ratio = 1.48, (95% CI 1.06, 2.06)) |
Melnikow, 1997 [26] | RCT | Enrolled = 104 (in 5 clinics) Follow-up = 86 Taxi voucher = 34 Blanket coupon = 35 Control = 35 | Pregnant women in need of pre-natal care Mean age = 25 53% white | Taxicab voucher for travel to pre-natal appointment | No | Utilization (appointment kept) | Unadjusted odds ratio for keeping first appointment = 0.32 (95% CI 0.12, 0.88) |
Saxon, 2019 [27] | Observational, pre-post | Pre = 150 Post = 103 | Urban academic health center patients; 60 years of age or older, English-speaking, had a chronic disease, had self-reported transportation barriers Mean age = 72 54% white | 3 months of free unlimited ride-share transportation (not just for medical needs) | Yes | Health status (HRQoL; daily step count) | No significant differences between pre-and post-study daily step counts or validated measures of Satisfaction with Life and Geriatric Depression |
Vais, 2020a [28] | Observational, pre-post | 78 Ride utilizers = 19 Denied transportation issues = 30 Rescheduled < 72 h = 12 Could not be reached by telephone = 17 | Gynecology patients who reported difficulties with transportation (excluding obstetrics) Mean age = 36–42 100% African American | Free roundtrip transportation to clinic visit using ride-share | No | Utilization (clinic no-show rate), costs | Weekly no-show rate pre = 27.8%, post = 19.4%; average cost of rides was $32.48 |
Vais, 2020b [29] | Observational pre-post | 86 Ride utilizers = 32 Denied transportation issues = 31 Could not be reached = 23 | Patients with sickle cell disease and their caregivers attending a public urban pediatric specialty clinic Mean age = 13 73% African American | Free roundtrip transportation to clinic visit using ride-share | No | Utilization (clinic no-show rate), costs | Decrease in no-show rate from 20.4% to 11.9% using transportation service; total cost of rideshares = $2175; average round trip cost was $67 |
Whorms, 2021 [30] | Observational, Pre-post | Pre-intervention = 8021 Ride share = 151 Post-intervention non-ride share = 7556 | Patients scheduled for MRI at an urban academic health center Mean age 54–60 76% white | Free ride share for patients who spontaneously expressed transportation difficulty in pre-visit reminder telephone call | No | Same day cancellations, timeliness for appointment, cost of rides | No statistically significant difference in same day clinic cancellations (8.1% vs 8.0%); 8 min earlier check-in time for ride share appointment patients, average cost of ride = $17.92 |