Washington Health Insurance Coverage for Children, Pregnant Mothers & Veterans

Children

Basic Health Plus

Basic Health Plus is a Medicaid program for children in low-income households. There are no copayments for services and no monthly premiums. DSHS pays the cost of coverage. It offers added benefits and services for children, including vision and dental benefits, and transportation to medical services. If you are on Basic Health, your children may be eligible for Basic Health Plus. They must be under age 19, a U.S. citizen, or legal resident who arrived in the U.S. before Aug. 22, 1996. They must also reside permanently in the U.S. for at least five years to be eligible to receive federal benefits (also called the "five year ban.") You can enroll children not living in your household in Basic Health (see page 11), but not Basic Health Plus. For more information, call 1-800-660-9840, or visit the Basic Health Web site at www.basichealth.hca.wa.gov.

Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP)

Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) is a federal and state program that covers children under age 19 in families with limited income. Many children who don't qualify for Basic Health are eligible for CHIP. A family must meet income limits for children to qualify for CHIP. These income limits represent gross monthly household income minus childcare and other approved deductions.

When you apply for CHIP, DSHS considers the children for Medicaid first. If the children are not eligible for Medicaid due to income, DSHS will then check to see if the family income fits within the CHIP income guidelines. If children are eligible for Medicaid, they are not eligible for CHIP.

The Children's Health Program (CHP)

This program provides medical coverage to non-citizen children, including visitors or students from another country, undocumented children, and qualified alien children under age 18 in limited-income families. You must meet income requirements.

Children's medical programs have no asset limits. Remember, you must apply for children's medical programs and Alien Emergency Medical (see page 11) at the same time.

For more information about children's medical programs, visit http://fortress.wa.gov/dshs/maa/chip or call toll free at 1-877-543-7669.

Pregnant women and infants

Pregnancy Medical

This program offers medical coverage for pregnant women regardless of their citizenship, including undocumented women. You must meet income requirements, but there are no assets limits. Your newborn baby automatically receives full medical benefits for the first year. Call DSHS at 1-800-562-3022 to find the Community Service Office nearest you.

Active military and veterans

TRICARE military insurance

This insurance covers:

• active duty and retired service members
• some reserve members
• spouses and unmarried children
• widows or widowers
• unmarried children of deceased active duty or retired service members

For more information, call TRICARE toll free at 1-888-TRIWEST (1-888-874-9378) or visit www.tricare.osd.mil.

Veterans' Assistance

If you are a veteran, you may be entitled to care and prescription drug coverage through a Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) medical facility. To find out if you are eligible, call the VA Health Benefits Service Center at 1-877-222-VETS, or visit the VA Web site at: http://www.va.gov/.