Appalachian Agency receives grant to provide medical transportation

Cedar Bluff, VA — Appalachian Agency for Senior Citizens, located in the Wardell Industrial Park in Cedar Bluff, has received a grant that will help provide medical transportation to residents 60 years of age and older, who reside in Buchanan, Dickenson, Russell and Tazewell counties.

The National Aging and Disability Transportation Center awarded $284,898 in competitive grants to communities in 10 states — Alabama, California, Idaho, Kansas, Minnesota, New Mexico, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Virginia and Washington State — to implement innovative projects that will remove barriers to transportation and expand mobility options for older adults and people with disabilities.

The 10 Innovations in Mobility grantees will each receive grants of up to $30,000 to fully launch transportation programs that address the needs of older adults and people with disabilities living in their communities. Unique to this year’s grant recipients is the unprecedented opportunity they, with funding from NADTC, have to support the roll-out of new transportation approaches targeted to older adults and people with disabilities as their communities grapple with, and begin to emerge from, the COVID-19 pandemic. The end goal for these grantees is the creation of sustainable and replicable innovations that result in increased availability of accessible transportation.

Appalachian Agency’s new medical transportation service is focused on individuals who need ongoing cancer treatment or dialysis but is also available for other medical services such as surgery or appointments to specialists outside the four-county area.

“Accessible and affordable transportation is key to support the health and well-being of older adults and their ability to live at home and in the community. Yet ensuring the availability of adequate transportation in communities is a major challenge,” said Sandy Markwood, CEO of the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging. “The Aging Network has long recognized that older adults who have mobility limitations struggle to stay connected to their communities. Our members, and as a result our work, are at the forefront of efforts to expand transportation options for all.”

The National Aging and Disability Transportation Center is funded through a cooperative agreement of Easterseals, the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging (n4a), and the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Transit Administration, with guidance from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Community Living. NADTC’s mission is to increase accessible transportation options for older adults, people with disabilities and caregivers nationwide.

For more information about this new service or to schedule transportation, call Appalachian Agency for Senior Citizens at 276/964-4915.