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Low-Income Insurance in Arizona

Arizona residents with limited income and resources don't have to live without quality medical care. Though private health insurance may be too expensive for low-income families, the state's government-sponsored health plans, coupled with public health programs and federal tax credits, make it easy for low-income Arizona residents to find the affordable coverage they need.

  1. Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System

    • The Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System is the agency that regulates Medicaid in Arizona. Families with children qualify for coverage if their household income falls below 100 percent of the federal poverty level. Adults without coverage may also qualify for coverage, though individuals over age 19 may be subject to a copay at the time medical services are rendered. Arizona Medicaid provides benefits for all federally mandated Medicaid coverage requirements, including ambulatory transfers, diagnostic services, physician's care, inpatient and outpatient hospital services, X-ray services and family planning supplies.

    KidsCare

    • Arizona children from households that exceed the Medicaid eligibility limits in the state but with too little income to afford a private health insurance plan may choose to enroll in KidsCare. This program is only for low-income children under age 19 who don't have other health insurance coverage and who live in homes with household income below 200 percent of the federal poverty level. KidsCare charges a monthly premium for each child enrolled in the program, but as of June 2011, qualifying children must submit to a waiting list before enrolling in the program, as a lack of program funding has frozen the acceptance of newly approved applicants. Instead, children who have been on the waiting list the longest must wait until existing enrollment decreases to make room for new enrollees. Once a child enters the program, KidsCare pays for health, dental and vision services.

    Considerations

    • Arizona also offers two programs designed to meet specific health needs of women and HIV patients. The Well Woman HealthCheck Program offers free female breast, uterine and cervical cancer screenings to low-income women throughout the state. The AIDS Drug Assistance Program, on the other hand, extends medications and treatment to individuals diagnosed with HIV who are unable to pay for medical treatment due to a lack of health insurance or an inability to qualify for Medicaid.

    Tax Relief

    • Beginning in January 2014, Arizona will offer a state health-insurance exchange from which residents may purchase private health insurance if they don't have access to a group plan or a government-funded plan. Because laws in the Affordable Care Act will require that all Americans carry health insurance or else pay a fine beginning in 2014, the federal government will implement a tax credit to offset the financial burden of health insurance premiums for low- and middle-income Americans. Arizona residents who purchase health insurance from the exchange but who have household incomes of less than 400 percent of the federal poverty limit will qualify for the credit.

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