SB00429 • 2026

AN ACT CONCERNING MEDICAID REIMBURSEMENT FOR EMERGENCY MEDICAL TRANSPORTATION.

Healthcare

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: Human Services Committee
Last action: 2026-05-22
Official status: Transmitted by Secretary of the State to Governor
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide specific details about federal approval timelines or exact reimbursement amounts.

Medicaid Reimbursement for Ambulance Services

This act changes how Medicaid reimburses ambulance services by basing out-of-district mileage payments on the actual distance traveled with a patient onboard.

What This Bill Does

Changes how Medicaid calculates payment for ambulance rides that take patients outside their local area based on the actual distance traveled while carrying a patient.
Requires ambulance companies to use accurate methods, like GPS or mapping programs, to measure and document the exact distance traveled during each trip.

Who It Names or Affects

Medicaid recipients who need emergency medical transportation out of their local area.
Ambulance service providers who transport patients outside their usual district.

Terms To Know

Relative Value Unit: A numeric value for ambulance services relative to the value of a base level ambulance service.
Out-of-district mileage calculation: The method used by Medicaid to calculate reimbursement based on the distance traveled with a patient onboard from pickup point to destination.

Limits and Unknowns

Does not specify exact amounts of reimbursement for ambulance services.
Requires federal approval before implementing changes in payment methodology.

Bill History

2026-05-22 Connecticut General Assembly
Transmitted to the Secretary of State
2026-05-22 Connecticut General Assembly
Transmitted by Secretary of the State to Governor
2026-05-19 LCO
Public Act 26-88
2026-05-05 Connecticut General Assembly
House Passed
2026-05-05 Connecticut General Assembly
In Concurrence
2026-04-09 Connecticut General Assembly
Favorable Report, Tabled for the Calendar, House
2026-04-09 Connecticut General Assembly
House Calendar Number 385
2026-04-08 Connecticut General Assembly
Senate Passed
2026-04-01 LCO
Reported Out of Legislative Commissioners' Office
2026-04-01 Connecticut General Assembly
Favorable Report, Tabled for the Calendar, Senate
2026-04-01 Connecticut General Assembly
Senate Calendar Number 221
2026-04-01 LCO
File Number 311
2026-03-26 LCO
Referred to Office of Legislative Research and Office of Fiscal Analysis 03/31/26 5:00 PM
2026-03-20 LCO
Filed with Legislative Commissioners' Office
2026-03-19 HS
Joint Favorable
2026-03-06 Connecticut General Assembly
Public Hearing 03/10
2026-03-05 Connecticut General Assembly
Referred to Joint Committee on Human Services

Official Summary Text

To increase Medicaid reimbursement for ambulance services by amending the out-of-district mileage calculation for such services.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

Senate Bill No. 429

Public Act No. 26-88

AN ACT CONCERNING MEDICAID REIMBURSEMENT FOR
EMERGENCY MEDICAL TRANSPORTATION.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:

Section 1. Section 17b-273 of the general statutes is repealed and the
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2026):
(a) On and after April 1, 1983, the Commissioner of Social Services
shall increase the payment rate for ambulance rides eligible under the
state medical assistance program. Subject to federal approval, beginning
with the fiscal year commencing July 1, 2015, the Commissioner of Social
Services shall, within available appropriations, revise the payment
methodology for ambulance services under the Medicaid program to
apply a relative value unit system similar to the payment methodology
used in the Medicare pro gram. The basic life support nonemergency
transport shall be designated as the base rate with the relative value unit
system applied to basic life support nonemergency transports, basic life
support emergency transports, advanced life support nonemergency
transports, advanced life support emergency transports and paramedic
intercept services. For purposes of this section, "relative value unit"
means a numeric value for ambulance services relative to the value of a
base level ambulance service.
Senate Bill No. 429

Public Act No. 26-88 2 of 2

(b) On and after July 1, 2026, the Commissioner of Social Services
shall base the out-of-district mileage calculation for ambulance services
reimbursed under the state medical assistance program on the distance
traveled by an ambulance with the patient onb oard from the point of
patient pickup to the destination, rounded to the nearest one -tenth of a
mile. An ambulance service may use any reasonable and verifiable
method to document such mileage, including, but not limited to, global
positioning system data, navigation or dispatch computer systems or
commercially available mapping routing programs. The commissioner
shall require an ambulance service provider to maintain documentation
of such mileage as part of the patient care record, including, but not
limited to, a trip report with the name of the patient and street address
of the patient pickup point and destination.