Detailed schedule is not established in the supplied canonical timeline. Timing shown is v1 editorial sequencing, subject to the source gates.
A major transportation-to-care program — appropriations authority sits with the City Council; legal review and a fiscal model gate the launch.
The problem
Too many Tampa residents miss doctor's appointments simply because they can't get there — no car, no reliable bus, no one to drive them. Missed appointments become missed diagnoses, and missed diagnoses become emergencies.
The plan
Health Transit Connect tackles one of the biggest silent barriers to care: getting there. The program connects residents to reliable rides for medical appointments — because a bus that doesn't come is a prescription never filled.
As a major program, it goes through Council appropriations with a fiscal model and legal review, so the promise is funded before it's made.
How you’ll know it’s working
- Fiscal model and legal review completed
- Service design published
- Rides connected to health appointments
- Missed-appointment trends tracked
From the Blueprint
- Plugs into Sunshine Line, Medicaid NEMT, Uber Health, MTM, WeCare Transport, and VA VTS for veterans.
- City shuttles and vouchers fill gaps; web and mobile booking plus a staffed call center.
- Eligibility check routes covered trips to existing payers first, then deploys city-funded rides.
- GIS maps missed-appointment hotspots to optimize routes; real-time trip tracking with text updates.
- Timeline: Months 1-3 design and MOUs; Months 4-6 pilot in two high-missed-appointment corridors.
- KPIs: no-show rate reduction, trips per month by ZIP code and payer, post-trip satisfaction.
Sources and research conditions
S01 pp. 261-271
SOURCE-SUPPORTED; LEGAL REVIEW; FISCAL MODEL
Detailed schedule is not established in the supplied canonical timeline. Timing shown is v1 editorial sequencing, subject to the source gates.