Family Health Coverage Program

At Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, we are committed to providing medically necessary and life-saving services to all pediatric patients, regardless of a family's ability to pay, under our Financial Assistance Policy.

The aim of our Department of Family Health Coverage Program is to help uninsured and underinsured families get the financial assistance they need. We will assign your family a coordinator who can help you apply for available public and private assistance programs and, if applicable, CHOP's Financial Assistance program.

Your Family Health Coverage Coordinator can provide you with information about each of the available assistance programs, as well as help you apply for those that are appropriate for your family. He or she can also help you apply for CHOP's Financial Assistance, which is available to families with health insurance to help them pay for healthcare bills not covered by insurance. In evaluating the ability to pay, the Hospital reviews the patient family’s income, available assets and other financial circumstances.

Because CHOP is committed to assisting children and families, the Family Health Coverage Program is provided as a service to everyone in our community. We will assist any child or adult who needs help applying for public health insurance — not just patients we treat at CHOP. Please call the office so a Family Health Coverage Coordinator can help you apply.

(Download a description of our Financial Assistance Program in Spanish, French, Chinese, Portuguese, and Vietnamese.)

State and Federal financial assistance

Financial assistance programs — such as Medical Assistance (Medicaid), the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), Pennsylvania Health Choices, New Jersey Family Care and children's health coverage programs in New Jersey — have different provider networks, benefits and eligibility criteria.

For example, parents with very low incomes usually qualify for Medical Assistance for their children. Families with slightly higher incomes usually qualify for CHIP. And families who already have insurance coverage and are in need of additional financial help  may be eligible under the state "loophole guidelines" if the child has a qualified medical condition or is chronically ill.

What is Medicaid?

Medicaid is the largest children's health program in the United States. This program covers all services identified as medically necessary. This includes physician and hospital visits, well child care, health screenings, and vision and dental care, with few costs paid by the family. Medicaid is a joint program with costs shared between the federal and state governments. Children's hospitals provide a significant amount of the care for Medicaid children.

What is CHIP?

The Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) is designed for families who earn too much money to qualify for Medicaid, yet cannot afford to buy private insurance for their children. CHIP coverage provides eligible children with coverage for a full range of health services including regular checkups, immunizations, prescription drugs, lab tests, X-rays, hospital visits and more.