Ride-sharing giant Lyft has announced a partnership with the American Cancer Society by which rides for cancer patients to their treatment appointments will be free of charge. The rides are the product of a partnership with ACS’s Road to Recovery program that provides transportation to and from treatment for people with cancer who do not have a ride or are unable to drive themselves.
“The best treatment in the world can’t help someone if they can’t access it.” said Megan Wessel, Vice President of Regional Cancer Control of the American Cancer Society, to the Miami Herald.
“Access to care is a big problem in our country, therefore transportation programs and partnerships like the one we are launching with Lyft in Miami-Dade County are vital for these patients to get the treatments they need and deserve.”
In addition to Miami, Lyft is providing free rides to cancer patients in other major cities including Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Houston, Las Vegas, Cincinnati, Denver, St. Louis, and Atlanta.
Lyft has also added ACS to its app-related feature called Round-Up & Donate, whereby Lyft customers nationwide can round up the cost of their fare to the nearest dollar and have that difference donated to ACS.
Lyft has also partnered with Ride2MD, a Miami, FL, based transportation company that provides rides for patients to and from doctor’s offices and hospitals.
ACS notes that patients must be traveling to a cancer-related medical appointment in order to take advantage of the Road to Recovery program and that it make take several days to coordinate a patient’s ride.
Individuals are asked to call 1-800-227-2345 to coordinate appointments or consult ACS’s program page here.
Photo by Lyft