The Cooperative is Proud to be 'Breaking Down Transportation Barriers to Health'

LISC’s Health Access Fund, a collaboration with Uber, has helped 46,000 people overcome transportation hurdles to health care and social services since 2022. Now, LISC and Uber are expanding our collaboration with grants to 11 community-focused health organizations across the country.

LISC’s Health Access Fund, a collaboration with Uber, addresses the transportation access gap by helping people with low incomes improve their health by offering free access to non-emergency medical transportation. Essentially, the Fund makes grants to health providers serving at-risk populations so they can offer free rides for patients to get to appointments. 

It seems simple, just offering someone a ride, but the impact is significant. LISC and Uber initially collaborated during the COVID-19 pandemic, providing rides to health appointments for individuals in hard-hit communities that lacked access to vaccines and medical care. We drew on lessons learned—both what worked and what didn’t—to launch the Health Access Fund in 2022 and are now expanding that fund to reach more people. In collaboration with community health providers, the Fund has supported 400,000 no-cost rides in 28 states, helping more than 46,000 people get to medical and social service appointments for their health and well-being.

The numbers to date tell just one part of the story. We also asked patients how and why the rides made a difference in their health. Three-quarters of people participating in rides said that a lack of transportation hindered their ability to access health and social services, and more than half said they missed appointments as a result. Most rides were used to access primary care, and many were for women earning less than $20,000 annually. Overall, demand for rides far exceeded what our community health partners could support.  

That’s why LISC and Uber are expanding the Fund, with grants to 11 community partners to support an estimated 75,000 rides in the coming year.

That’s why LISC and Uber are expanding the Fund, with grants to 11 community partners to support an estimated 75,000 rides in the coming year. These rides will help people to access pediatric care, geriatric care, or maternal health care, as well as treatments for chronic conditions and cancer.  

Grantees are all health organizations that serve economically and medically vulnerable people, and  have identified transportation as a clear and persistent roadblock to care. They include: 

• American Cancer Society (programs in Boston, Houston and New York) 

• Care Ring, Inc. (Charlotte, N.C.) 

• Elica Health Centers (Sacramento, Calif.) 

• Mary’s Center for Maternal and Child Care (Washington, D.C.) 

• Nevada Health Centers, Inc. (Carson City, Nev.) 

• St. Joseph’s Health System/Mercy Care (Atlanta) 

• Sostento, Inc. (Multistate) 

• Southern New Jersey Perinatal Cooperative (Pennsauken, N.J.) 

• The West Oakland Health Council/Baywell Health (Oakland) 

• Live HeartSmart Alabama/University of Alabama (Birmingham, Ala.) 

• Venice Family Clinic (Venice, Calif.) 

“Low-income patients, including seniors, pregnant women and those with chronic illnesses, are disproportionately affected by transportation challenges,” said Walter B. Davis, CEO of Nevada Health Centers, the state’s largest primary care provider for uninsured, underinsured and geographically isolated residents. “By offering rideshare-supported transportation, NVHC can provide timely access to care, reduce preventable ER visits and improve health outcomes for patients.” 

Care Ring, Inc., in Charlotte, N.C., also serves people with limited incomes and has identified transportation as a top need. “The large volume of rides available through this grant will not only decrease clinical no-show rates but also enable our patients to reliably get to medical and social services appointments without additional financial burden, allowing them to re-allocate their limited resources elsewhere,” said Heidi Hannon, Director of Grants Administration at Care Ring, Inc. 

All 11 grantees share a similar experience: when patients cannot get to health and social services appointments, their outlooks worsen, often leading to the need for more health interventions down the road. “We can remove a core barrier by offering no-cost rides so that preventative care, specialized treatments and essential support resources are consistently within reach of the most vulnerable from our community,” said Reginauld Jackson, Baywell Health, Oakland. 

LISC and Uber will continue to track progress, sharing data and insights on how solving transportation challenges can help foster healthier communities while reducing costs for healthcare systems. 

Read more from LISC's website here.