How to add or enhance busing on the IEP

March 2026 - we are working on updating the links and forms below to catch up with changes at the schools website. The basic steps are still accurate.

To add or enhance special education busing on the IEP 

Specialized transportation = home to school busing with an attendant. At first it must be added by a School Psychologist like any Related Service considered more restrictive. 

Accommodations = extras like Mini-wagon, air conditioning, limited time, wheelchair lift, etc.  

Time frame: The rules say this takes 30 days maximum, but first they want your school to provide documents about your child to the Office of School Health (OSH) with:

• details about how the child’s specific medical diagnoses impact the way the child functions during travel in a group, and

• consent signed by a legal parent/guardian to have the child's doctor speak with the OSH doctor.
  Meanwhile you will NOT have the requested services nor reimbursement. 

 To save time: 

• Speak with pediatrician and/or specialist; you may need an appointment to discuss this

• ask the school team to schedule a reconvene or reevaluation meeting including parent, psychologist and teachers, to update the transportation page of the IEP;

• make sure the school knows who their Transportation liaison is and who at OPT is the liaison assigned to their borough / region so they can follow up after the new IEP is finalized (by informing OPT that the student’s medical codes have to be updated in the routing system), see https://infohub.nyced.org/in-our-schools/operations/transportation-resources-for-schools

• Read the 4 steps below carefully before you get started

---

When schools statewide were using SESIS to write IEPs, this was the menu for accommodations on the Transportation section. We don’t have a picture from the new software yet, but we know that Diabetes was added locally. See https://www.pistnyc.org/events/pep-august-11-2022

5 steps to know about:

1- Get HIPAA form to the doctor and back

Print out two blank forms in case of error. Write your info, child’s info, name of doctor you authorize to speak with the DOE Office of Student Health; sign. Disclaimer: some advocates argue against sharing personal info this way. Do research & make an informed choice. 

For English, the 2022-23 HIPAA is at https://www.schools.nyc.gov/docs/default-source/default-document-library/exceptions-form---hippa

For other languages, one way is to copy this

https://cdn-blob-prd.azureedge.net/prd-pws/docs/default-source/default-document-library/authorization-for-release-of-health-information-pursuant-to-hipaa-2022-23-

and add the word for the language in English (lowercase), then add

.pdf

Example:   Aquí se encuentra el formulario de autorización en español

https://cdn-blob-prd.azureedge.net/prd-pws/docs/default-source/default-document-library/authorization-for-release-of-health-information-pursuant-to-hipaa-2022-23-spanish.pdf

Photo of a HIPAA release form in English that has to be signed by a parent or legal rep (foster agency, for example) The school can help you get a hard copy of the most recent version, in English for the doctor and in other languages for the family if needed. Spanish example is below.

Foto de la planilla Autorizacion para la divulgacion de informacion de salud segun la lay HIPAA. Los medicos necesitan recibir eso antes de poder explicar al sistema las razones porque el individuo hace falta transporte especializado.

2 -  If student’s IEP does not already recommend busing,

or has busing but without the proper accommodation… 

Then the parent/guardian (or foster agency) must have the child's doctor fill out a Medical Evaluation Request, formerly the Request for Medical Transportation Accommodation.        

This has appeared online (in English) since 2021 at https://cdn-blob-prd.azureedge.net/prd-pws/docs/default-source/default-document-library/medical-evaluation-request-form.pdf or https://cdn-blob-prd.azureedge.net/prd-pws/docs/default-source/default-document-library/medical-evaluation-request-form6e2bfa8e73f14ecd993cc7cae95d061d.pdf

However due to constant IT changes at the website these documents are hard to access (and easily confused with the 504 accommodations paperwork). Below are two sample images of forms used recently and further back. Ask the school for hard copies.

Rather than simply dropping off the form at the doctor’s office, schedule a thorough discussion with them about aspects of the diagnosis that impact the student’s wellness and functioning during travel.

In 2024 this was being used for both IEP and temporary medical codes and was accessible online. In 2026, you may need a school staff or your NYCSA credentials to log in to the document library and locate a comparable pdf.

3 - Follow these tips from experienced parents: 

• Keep blank copies because you may be required to renew annually; 

• Keep a copy or scan of the completed forms in case you change doctors or need to reference it when dealing with OPT; 

• Have the doctor’s office keep a copyof the completed forms in the child's file so they are ready when the Office of School Health calls.

Note 1:For the signature,Do NOT use a Physician Assistant (PA) such as often work at the school clinic. Nurse Practitioner or any MD signature is accepted but PA signature is not. This rule punishes parents who cannot afford the cost & time of seeing a doctor outside school.

Note 2: ‍ ‍Do NOT confuse IEP and 504 Transportation Accommodations. The 504 paperwork called Medical Accommodations Request Form is different! https://cdn-blob-prd.azureedge.net/prd-pws/docs/default-source/default-document-library/medical-accommodations-request-form-school-year-2022--2023.pdf is for students with either temporary medical conditions (like a broken leg) or permanent medical conditions (like Diabetes) that call for transportation even when the student is not otherwise eligible (lives too close; grade is > 6; has no IEP; or has an IEP with no transportation mandate, involving a classification unrelated to the medical condition). This document is not advising about 504 Transportation, but there are other advocacy organizations which can do that. The only document common to both is the HIPAA Release form. 

4 - Submit the above documents

…and any supporting ones to the school IEP team; tell them your best times to meet.

Monitor your phone and possibly NYCSA for invitations to the meeting! If you miss one appointment, they will only reschedule once more before closing the process, and you'll have to start over. 

5 - Follow up after the IEP meeting

Make sure the IEP is finalized promptly and the school assessment team or administrator has followed up by contacting an OPT liaison for the school's geographical district https://infohub.nyced.org/in-our-schools/operations/transportation-resources-for-schools/transportation-liaisons

In the years between reevaluations, your best plan is to repeat the gathering of these accommodation forms (especially if the doctor wrote an expiration date or finite number of weeks). Bring it to the Annual IEP meeting and remind school staff to check off the correct boxes in the transportation section. OTHERWISE OPT MIGHT NOT HAVE THE CORRECT CODES IN THE SYSTEM WHEN THEY ROUTE THE STUDENT!

If at some point your child is ready to drop a certain accommodation, this should be possible at an annual but there should be text written to justify it, and further communication with the transportation liaison. GOOD LUCK

---

Read this online and check for annual updates to the links at:
 pistnyc.org/resources/howtogetiepbusing 

Prepared for the community by volunteer advocates at:

Parents to Improve School Transportation /

Padres y Madres para Mejorar el Transporte Escolar

Original 10/2019 [updated 09/2020, 09/2021, 01/2022, 07/2022, 08/2022, 02/2023, 08/2024]

If you have questions, new information, corrections, or translations to provide, contact us please!

pistnyc@gmail.com 631.743.6296    https://www.facebook.com/groups/pistnyc/