How Much Does Stretcher Transport Cost in Atlanta?

New to stretcher transport? Start with the full service guide

This page is about price. If you also need to know who qualifies for a stretcher, how the crew transfers a patient, what discharge day looks like, or how stretcher trips to dialysis and family events work, read our full guide to stretcher transportation in Atlanta — it covers the whole service end to end.

Why stretcher transport costs more than a wheelchair van

The higher base rate is not a surcharge on being sick. It reflects two things a wheelchair trip does not require: a second crew member, and equipment. A stretcher transport is a two-person job from start to finish — one crew member cannot safely move a patient from a bed to a stretcher, down a hallway, over a threshold, and into a vehicle. The stretcher itself, the securement system, and the vehicle built to carry it all cost more to operate than a standard wheelchair van.

At $420 base plus $13.20 per mile, a short Decatur or East Atlanta trip stays well under what a private ambulance would cost for the same distance, because you are not paying for clinical monitoring you do not need.

When you need a stretcher — and when you do not

Choose stretcher transport when the patient must remain lying flat for the entire trip but is medically stable and does not require monitoring en route. That covers most bed-bound patients moving between home, a skilled nursing facility, hospice, or a hospital.

If the patient can sit upright safely for the length of the ride, a wheelchair van at $180 base plus $9.60 per mile is the right choice and will cost meaningfully less. If the patient needs oxygen management, continuous vital-sign monitoring, or a trained EMT attendant, a BLS ambulance is the correct vehicle, not a stretcher van. Our dispatchers will tell you honestly which one your situation calls for when you call — we would rather send the right vehicle than the expensive one.

• Bed-bound patient moving home from a hospital or rehab facility
• Transfer between a skilled nursing facility and a specialist appointment
• Hospice transport where comfort and dignity matter more than speed
• Any patient who cannot tolerate sitting upright for the trip

Common stretcher routes in metro Atlanta

The stretcher trips we run most often in DeKalb County are hospital-to-home and facility-to-facility moves: Emory Decatur Hospital back to a private residence in Decatur or Candler-McAfee, a skilled nursing facility in Tucker or Stone Mountain to a follow-up appointment, or a downtown Atlanta hospital campus to a home in East Atlanta. These are short-mileage trips, which keeps the per-mile portion small relative to the base rate.

Longer transfers — a discharge from an Atlanta hospital to a family home well outside the perimeter, for example — carry an extended-area fee on top of mileage when either end of the trip sits far from our Decatur base. That fee is charged once, on whichever endpoint is farthest, and the calculator shows it as its own line.

Included on every stretcher transport

• A two-person crew trained in safe lifting, transfers, and securement
• Door-through-door service — we come to the bedside, not the curb
• Comfort package: blanket, climate control, and bottled water
• One companion rides free, space permitting

Add-ons and payment

Lift Assist is not billed on stretcher transports — lifting is inherent to the service and already covered by the base rate. The add-ons that can apply are an Extra Stop at one vehicle base fare per stop plus the added mileage, and additional companions at $25 each after the first.

Stretcher transport is strictly private pay at Heart2Heart. Heart2Heart bills insurance for medically necessary transports such as dialysis, wound care and emergency-department related trips. Coverage depends on the patient's plan and is never guaranteed, and we do not bill Medicaid. Heart2Heart does not accept Medicaid under any circumstances. Private-pay trips are paid by card; call dispatch at (678) 696-1583 with payment questions.