Illinois

Illinois: Maximize Enrollment and Retention for Kids in the All Kids Program

The Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) is leading the state’s project to Maximize Enrollment and Retention for Kids as a grantee of the Maximizing Enrollment for Kids program. In collaboration with the Illinois Department of Human Services, HFS administers the Illinois All Kids program. All Kids is the state’s integrated healthcare program for children, encompassing Medicaid, the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and state-only funded coverage. Federal funds contribute to covering children with family incomes up to 200% of the federal poverty level.  All Kids also includes state-only funded coverage for uninsured children in families with income above 200% of the federal poverty level as well as children at any income level who do not meet the citizenship or immigration requirements of Medicaid or CHIP. Despite the different funding sources, All Kids aims to appear seamless to families. The state uses one application for its children’s coverage programs and administratively matches families with the appropriate program.
 
Illinois has adopted several policies and procedures to ease the burden on families seeking health coverage for their children including presumptive eligibility, requiring only one pay stub for income verification, 12 months continuous eligibility and renewing enrollment administratively. The state also recently has begun a multi-stage technology upgrade project (Illinois Human Service and Healthcare Framework) designed to transform access and customer services for families seeking public benefits, including healthcare coverage. HFS’s goal as a grantee of the Maximizing Enrollment for Kids program is to ensure that there is “no wrong door” for families seeking health insurance for their uninsured children.
 
Click here for a profile of Illinois’ Medicaid and CHIP programs and to learn about the state’s enrollment and renewal simplification strategies.
 
As Governor Pat Quinn has written in his support for the proposal, “It is vital that every eligible child be enrolled in this important program [All Kids], which I have long supported.”