A contractor that gives medical transportation rides for Medicaid patients in Maine recently filed for bankruptcy, but said services will not be disrupted.

A state senator, though, voiced concerns about the future of the Medicaid rides system and the state health department said it is monitoring the situation.

Denver-based Modivcare — a for-profit company previously known as LogistiCare that operates Medicaid rides programs in 35 states — filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Texas on Aug. 20.

Victoria Zaharoff, a spokesperson for Modivcare said the company’s “operations and service lines continue uninterrupted, with no expected impact for clients, members, employees or transportation providers — either in Maine or nationwide.”

Non-emergency transportation to medical appointments is available to all people who have Medicaid, to make sure people can make their appointments even if they lack transportation.

Modivcare provides Medicaid transportation in 13 of 21 service areas in Maine, including Portland and Lewiston. The service areas are sections of Maine divvied up by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services for contracting purposes.

The rest of the service areas are operated by local nonprofits Penquis Community Action Agency and Waldo Community Action Partners.

After winning a competitive bid, Modivcare was slated to take over Medicaid transportation for the entire state in 2024 under a 10-year, $750 million contract, but Penquis filed a lawsuit arguing the bidding process was unfair to the local nonprofits. Waldo is listed as an interested party in the lawsuit.

Modivcare, Penquis and Waldo are providing rides in their current service areas while the lawsuit is pending.

The system has long been mired in controversy over patients missing appointments due to unreliable transportation, reaching a crisis level in Maine in 2013 and 2014. Since then, the service has improved, but patients have continued to lodge complaints.

State Sen. Mike Tipping, D-Orono, said that Modivcare’s bankruptcy filing should give the Maine DHHS pause about whether it wants to hand over the entire system to the company.

“This is an opportunity to reevaluate a decision to dismantle our current medical transportation infrastructure in about half of the state,” Tipping said.

Lindsay Hammes, a spokesperson for Maine DHHS, said they are “monitoring the situation closely.”

“We understand the importance of these transportation services and our priority is to ensure that MaineCare (Medicaid) members continue to get to their appointments without disruption,” Hammes said in a statement.

Tipping said it’s not too late to preserve service lines for the local nonprofits to make sure Maine is not solely using Modivcare when the company is struggling financially.

“State law is very clear that in Maine, contracts have to be not just awarded to the lowest bidder, but have to be in the best interest of the state,” Tipping said.