How routing and dispatching software can save you money
If you’re a business owner, you’ve heard the age-old saying: “you have to spend money to make money.” Maybe you’ve even said it yourself — and it’s true. If you want to build a successful business, you’re going to have to invest, not just money, but time, dedication, creativity, and innovative brainpower. When it comes to the non-emergency medical transportation industry, there are a lot of different rules and regulations that providers have to adhere to based on where they’re located, but the above still rings true. For providers looking to build a more efficient, worthwhile business, NEMT software is the perfect investment. In this case, the saying changes: you have to spend money to save money. That’s exactly what routing and dispatching software does.
NEMT provider overview
Non-emergency medical transportation is a Medicaid benefit available to beneficiaries who meet state qualifications. NEMT providers are the ones responsible for scheduling and deploying trips each day. As defined by CMS, providers must fulfill, at a minimum, the following requirements:
- Ensure necessary transportation to and from appointments
- Use the most appropriate form of transportation
- Include coverage for transportation and related travel expenses necessary to secure medical examinations and treatment.
Many providers have ditched manual trip planning in favor of electronic efforts. Below are some of the biggest ways routing software improves NEMT at any business.
Expedite route planning
Mapping out routes for all your daily trips will take forever if you’re doing it by hand. There’s just simply too many minute details to consider, paired with the fact that you’re likely handling dozens of trips every day. Not only does it take longer to plan, but the trips end up taking longer, too, since the person planning the trip may have missed a faster route option. Routing software makes it easy to pinpoint the fastest, most efficient routes for every trip, saving you both time and money.
Reduce vehicle maintenance
Less time spent on the road means less vehicle maintenance needed. Routing software identifies the fastest routes for each trip, along with searching for multiloading opportunities when possible to reduce the number of vehicles on the road. This allows for every vehicle to spend less time on the road, and as a whole, you’ll need to deploy fewer vehicles throughout the day, keeping your fleet in tip-top shape.
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Follow live trips
You can develop the perfect routes, but there’s still a chance your drivers won’t use them if they don’t have to. With routing software, it’s possible to follow every trip as it plays out in real time, so you can see if your drivers are taking any unplanned stops and following the route as it’s displayed. If your drivers aren’t executing trips as planned, you’ll know immediately so you can address the problem as soon as possible.
Send trip updates in real time
Unexpected occurrences happen on the road every day. Luckily, the system can adapt and update routes in real time for drivers, so they can avoid anything that will impede their trip progress. Whether it’s an accident, traffic, construction, or anything else that could change the arrival time, dispatchers can find a new route and communicate with drivers to make sure they still arrive on time.
Decrease business costs across the board
NEMT routing and dispatching software might sound like it’s built to target very specific problems, but in reality, it improves your entire business. As a result, you’ll save money in areas you haven’t even considered possible, like lower fuel costs, less wear and tear on your vehicles, and fewer drivers needed at your company. Once you make the switch to an advanced routing platform, you could quickly find your business reducing costs by 10–30%.
Increase productivity
When you find an easier way to do something, productivity increases tenfold. If your company is used to finding routes by hand, they’re going to save hours of time every day when they switch to an electronic process. Let’s say electronically scheduling and routing all your trips for the day only takes ten minutes. Your team now has significantly more free time to focus on improving your operation in other ways.
Create a better customer experience
Happy customers are good for your business, so customer satisfaction and transparency should be on the top of your priority list. According to a survey, 66% of consumers said transparency is one of the most attractive qualities in a company — and routing and dispatching software is a quick way to make sure your customers get just that. Software makes it possible for drivers to be on time to every pick up, transport their passengers via the quickest routes, and generally make them a reliable choice for transportation. Not only that, but many software systems offer a customer app that makes it possible for customers to both book trips on their own and communicate with drivers ahead of time. All these things combined make for a great customer experience, and in turn, ensure that you secure more repeat customers.
Transparency within the company
Much like happy customers, happy employees mean a successful company. Routing and dispatching software means you can easily run a cohesive, organized operation alongside your team. Using this type of platform guarantees transparency, since everyone will be trained and proficient in the system itself. It also lends more free time for you and your team to discuss ways to improve your business, any concerns that arise, and more.
It’s time to save with routing and dispatching software
Your business deserves better, and NEMT software makes that possible. When you invest in routing and dispatching software, you invest in your team, your customers, and your future. It’s time to make a change. Find a software system that works hard for your business, and see the difference your investment makes. Talk to our team at RouteGenie and see how powerful NEMT software can help your business.
