A new-to-Colorado Uber-like transportation service shuttling hospital patients, aging adults, and people with disabilities will soon begin service to UCHealth facilities in Fort Collins, Loveland, Longmont, and Greeley.

Carepool’s partnership with UCHealth begins this summer, according to a news release.

“There’s a lot of people, and especially older adults, who might not have family able to take them home after a procedure, said Carepool CEO Josh Massey in an interview. “The reason we’re partnering with UCHealth is so that we can give more medically-focused rides to people who are coming out of procedures.”

The Wisconsin-based company also plans to include ride services in the Pikes Peak and Colorado Springs region shortly after, he added.

Carepool’s focus with the partnership is to provide city-to-city transport for those who need to go to Denver and back for hospital appointments, according to Darryl Sellers, a spokesperson for Carepool.

UCHealth noticed that the hospitals around Northern Colorado have an unmet need of patients who require transportation to and from the hospital, a spokesperson for UCHealth told The Denver Gazette via email.

Hospital administrators can book rides on behalf of patients, and they can also sync Carepool’s app with the customer’s insurance providers or Medicaid to pay for rides, according to Massey.

“UCHealth partners with several ride-share organizations to make sure patients have a safe and reliable mode of transportation after undergoing a medical procedure,” said a spokesperson for UCHealth.

“We hope the partnership between UCHealth and Carepool’s door-through-door service, which will be piloted at UCHealth hospitals in northern Colorado, will enable our patients to get the care they need without the stress of finding a ride home,” the spokesperson added.

Customers can also book rides independently with a credit card on Carepool’s app, according to their news release.

Carepool enables passengers and drivers to build ongoing relationships because riders can schedule rides in advance and request a regular driver, according to Massey.

“Our riders can pre-book rides and have the assurance that their driver will show up rather than waiting post-op without certainty that a ride will be dispatched,” said Massey.

Drivers are CPR certified and can provide First Aid assistance when needed. They undergo a screening process and multiple interviews on camera.

“We recruit drivers who have a caring profile and like helping others, whether that be CNA experience or a healthcare background.” he said.

Carepool monitors their drivers’ performances on the road through their insurance company, making sure that drivers follow traffic laws and provide a safe ride for customers.

The service accommodates those in wheelchairs by offering door-through-door services, rather than dropping riders off at the curb.

“We want to be able to take some of that weight off the hospital staff, and we train our drivers to help with that,” Massey said.

Massey founded Carepool more than five years ago in hopes of creating a safe ride service program with a higher level of assistance for riders with disabilities, including blindness. He’s been quoted saying the idea for the company came after hearing about his grandmother’s difficulties with transportation through Medicaid and seeing the rise of services like Uber.

Massey shared in an interview that he had experienced some uncomfortable rides with other rideshare services, and even felt unsafe at times. He was also burdened after seeing his grandmother take long bus rides to see her husband in memory care because there were no rideshare services in rural areas.

“I’ve had rideshare experiences where I felt unsafe,” said Massey. “I wanted to create a company that is built on safety and relationship-building, and I also wanted to create a company that provided ride services in rural areas, as well as in cities.”

In addition to Colorado, Carepool provides ride services in seven other states, including Arizona, Iowa, Minnesota, North Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, and Wisconsin.

If you would like to request a ride with Carepool or become a driver for their company, visit its website carepool.us