An idle mode UE can RACH to a cell different from the cell paging the UE. The UE can be allocated additional time to respond to all cells in the neighborhood to identify the cell in which to RACH. Interference cancellation can occur at different rates based on whether the UE is in connected mode or idle mode. The time to respond to the page can be a function of a paging cycle. Additionally, a variable bias may promote early handoff to lower power cells and late handoff to high power cells.