Lyft has a big heart for people with disabilities. Aside from improving the way these people commute, Lyft is adding more opportunities for these people as they access rides that are paid through the Medicaid home and community-based services programs.
This covers people suffering from intellectual and developmental disabilities.
For those of you who don’t know, Medicaid is a joint federal and state program in the USA, providing free or low-cost health insurance to people with limited income and resources. They cover less of the people with disabilities, but with this partnership, their programs can reach the disabled.
Lyft stated it is updating its app to remove a “long-standing barrier” in its Lyft Pass for Public Funding program, which currently serves several Medicaid waiver recipients.
“That requirement blocked a meaningful share of LPPF riders – people whose rides were already paid for — from signing up or requesting rides at all,” Betty Yen, director of healthcare partnerships at Lyft, told RSF, adding further that about 15 percent to 20 percent of LPPF participants are unbanked.
So under this program, participating home- and community-based services providers can be able to authorize a budget, and directly pay for on-demand rides for people with developmental disabilities as part of their catalog for Medicaid waiver services. What’s great is that these people won’t need to exert effort that would hamper their conditions even more.
Moreover, Lyft has also enforced updates on its app to allow individuals invited not directly, but through a participating or affiliate organization, to skip the step requesting a payment method when creating a brand-new account. Additionally, the payment pre-authorization checkpoint for rides paid via LPPF has been waived. See the changes?
“Lyft Pass for Public Funding exists so individuals in Medicaid HCBS programs can seamlessly access Lyft within the framework of Medicaid’s rigorous requirements. But a rider’s own bank account status was getting in the way of a ride their program had already paid for. That’s a barrier we could remove, so we did,” Yen further noted. “It’s a small technical change with an outsized impact for people who depend on this program for getting to work, navigating their communities independently, and daily living.”
However, those interested in availing of this to get their Lyft account, and they must input their personal payment method, such as a credit card. This payment method should also be authorized each time a ride is requested.
Lyft takes charge of connecting passengers with nearby drivers through an app. Passengers input their destination, select their ride option, and get an estimated fare.
Drives will then accept requests, fetch the passenger, and provide transportation. Payment is processed through the app after the trip, while riders can rate and review their experience. For more ridesharing news, keep it locked right here on the RSF site!