Montana NEMT Broker 2026: Modivcare Takes Over and What Providers Must Do

The Montana NEMT broker is now Modivcare. On October 1, 2026, Modivcare took over Montana Medicaid non-emergency medical transportation statewide, ending the old model in which Mountain Pacific Quality Health approved rides and Conduent handled provider enrollment and claims. If you run commercial, wheelchair or stretcher trips in Montana, you now enroll, receive trips and get paid through Modivcare.

That is a bigger shift than a typical broker swap. Montana Medicaid NEMT used to run without a broker: Mountain Pacific approved trips and providers were paid through the state's own claims system. Many Montana operators are now working with a broker for the first time. This guide covers what changed, what stayed the same, what wheelchair and stretcher fleets still need from the state, and a checklist for the first months under the new broker.

Who Is the Montana NEMT Broker in 2026?

Modivcare is the single statewide broker for Montana Medicaid rides. In its July 9, 2026 provider notice, the Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) said it had contracted with Modivcare for NEMT broker services and that administrative and operational work would move from Mountain Pacific Quality Health to Modivcare. Phone lines opened for a soft launch on September 1, 2026, and the full program went live on October 1.

For members, the front door looks familiar. The reservation number did not change and now answers 24 hours a day. For providers, almost everything behind that phone line is new: who enrolls you, who assigns trips, who approves exceptions and who pays the claim.

What Changed When Modivcare Montana Took Over?

The DPHHS NEMT program overview spells out the structural change. Modivcare now subcontracts directly with transportation providers, Conduent no longer acts as the NEMT enrollment broker, and payment moves off the state systems to Modivcare. Member eligibility rules did not change, so the same people qualify for rides. What changed is how those rides reach you and how you are paid for them.

Anyone who searched for Mountain Pacific Medicaid transportation this fall found an outdated process. Mountain Pacific no longer authorizes routine Montana trips, and the state's old enrollment and billing route now applies only to trips that took place before October 1.

Three changes operators feel first

• Trips arrive as broker assignments instead of approvals you schedule yourself, so your manifest depends on what Modivcare sends and when
• Your enrollment, credentialing file and vehicle list sit with Modivcare, not the state enrollment contractor
• Payment timing and claim rules follow Modivcare's process, so a trip record with a missing signature or mileage gap now delays cash directly

None of this is unusual in brokered states, but it is new in Montana. Fleets that already run Modivcare trips in other states will recognize the workflow. Fleets that only ever billed Montana Medicaid directly should expect a learning curve in the first billing cycles.

How Do You Become a Montana Medicaid Transportation Provider Under Modivcare?

Being enrolled with Montana Medicaid before October 1 does not carry you over automatically. DPHHS says providers must enroll with the new vendor to keep delivering NEMT, and the July notice says Modivcare assumes full responsibility for provider enrollment. Start with Modivcare's Montana transportation provider line at (866) 726-1471, then work through its network application. Our guide on how to become a Modivcare provider walks through the credentialing steps the broker uses in other states.

A practical order of work for a Montana Medicaid transportation provider joining or re-joining the network:

• Confirm the services you will offer: ambulatory, wheelchair, stretcher, or a mix
• Gather business records, insurance certificates and your Montana PSC license if you run specialized vehicles
• Build a driver file for every driver, with license, background check and training records in one place
• Prepare a vehicle list with VINs, inspection reports and photos of lifts, ramps and securement systems
• Submit the Modivcare application and track each open item until you receive a signed agreement

Credential files are where delays start, and a broker will check them again at renewal. ZeitRide's NEMT compliance tracking keeps driver and vehicle documents in one record with expiry alerts, so a lapsed card or an old insurance schedule shows up before Modivcare asks for it.

Montana Specialized Non-Emergency Transportation Requirements

Wheelchair and stretcher service in Montana is called specialized non-emergency transportation, or SNET. The state's Commercial and Specialized Non-Emergency Transportation Services manual defines SNET as transport in a van designed for members who use a wheelchair or must travel by stretcher, run by a provider holding a class B Public Service Commission (PSC) license. Organizations funded under federal 5310 or 5311 transit programs and Indian Health Service facilities are exempt from PSC licensing.

The broker change does not replace those state rules. Modivcare decides who joins its network and how trips are paid, but your PSC license, vehicle equipment and eligibility rules still come from Montana law and Medicaid policy. The same manual says providers may not bill members for cancellations or no-shows, and that nursing facilities handle routine transport within 20 miles unless the resident needs a wheelchair or stretcher or must travel farther.

One habit saves trouble under any broker: keep the vehicle list current. If a lift van breaks down and you send a spare that is not on file, the trip is at risk. Add every vehicle to your file the day it joins the fleet, not the day you need it.

How Do Prior Authorization and Billing Work for Montana Medicaid NEMT Now?

Prior authorization used to apply to every Montana Medicaid NEMT transport. Under the new program, round trips under 200 miles no longer need it. Trips over 200 miles round trip, out-of-state travel and per diem requests still go through review by the DPHHS NEMT program officer, coordinated with Modivcare. Rides still have to be booked through Modivcare, so never run a Montana Medicaid trip that Modivcare has not assigned to you.

On billing, the overview says clean claims are paid within seven days of batch processing. That is fast, but only for clean claims. Every missing pickup time, signature or mileage figure pushes a trip out of the fast lane and into rework.

Claims for trips before October 1

Trips with dates of service before the switch belong to the old program. The July notice sends questions about current claims to Montana Provider Relations at (800) 624-3958, and the old manual's timely filing limit was 12 months from the date of service. Run a report of every pre-October trip that is unbilled or denied, and close those out on the state side while your team learns Modivcare's process.

If trip data and billing still live in separate spreadsheets, fix that before volume builds. ZeitRide's NEMT billing software builds claims from the same trip records drivers capture in the app, so mileage, times and signatures are already attached when you bill.

What Modivcare's Booking Rules Mean for Your Manifest

Modivcare's Montana page asks members to book routine rides at least three business days before the appointment and to call at least one day ahead when a ride is cancelled or changed. Will-call return rides are available when an appointment end time is unknown, and members must bring their own wheelchair and any child safety seat.

For dispatch, that means most of tomorrow's work is known two or three days out, but late cancellations and will-call returns will keep moving the board. Rebuilding the manifest by hand each morning wastes the head start. If your trips arrive as a file or portal export, ZeitRide's bulk trip imports load the whole batch at once and flag missing fields before trips reach the live board.

Members, family or friends who drive themselves can claim mileage reimbursement through the Modivcare app or a paper trip log, within 30 days of the trip. That program pays drivers, not fleets, but it shapes demand: in rural counties, some rides will stay with family drivers rather than going to commercial providers.

Montana NEMT Broker Transition Checklist

Use the first months under the new broker to get your records into a shape any broker would accept. This list covers the work that most often decides whether a fleet gets trips and gets paid on time.

If you also work with brokers in other states, our NEMT broker transition checklist covers standing orders, portal overlap and the first-week checks that apply to any switch.

Make the Montana NEMT Broker Switch Work for Your Fleet

The Montana NEMT broker is Modivcare, and the change reaches every part of a provider's business: enrollment, trip assignment, authorization and payment. Re-enroll if you have not, keep your SNET licensing and vehicle file exact, close out pre-October claims, and capture complete records on every trip so claims qualify for Modivcare's seven-day payment.

ZeitRide gives Montana fleets scheduling, dispatch, routing, a driver app, compliance tracking and billing in one platform for $49 per vehicle per month, month to month. Book a ZeitRide demo and we will help you load your vehicles, drivers and recurring trips before your next Modivcare billing cycle.

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