The Requirements for Alabama Medicaid Insurance for Children

Medicaid is statewide health insurance for low-income individuals and their families. Health care providers give Medicaid services such as eye care, family planning, dental and physician services. State Medicaid programs offer plans that cover people with disabilities, pregnant women and children. In Alabama, the All Kids program provides health insurance for eligible children. The Alabama Medicaid Agency determines eligibility for health benefits for children statewide.

Income

• Uninsured children qualify for Alabama Medicaid services if their family meets certain income requirements. Program administrators base eligibility on the size of the family and household income. Family includes legal parents, natural and adopted children as well as unborn children. The Alabama Medicaid Agency calculates the income of working adults in the home and any child support payments received. For children under six, family household income cannot exceed 133 percent of the Federal Poverty Level. For children age six to 18, family household income cannot exceed 100 percent of the FPL.

Resources

• Alabama children must also meet resource requirements to qualify for Medicaid. Resources are the assets owned by all household members. To qualify, family resources cannot exceed $6,000 total. The Medicaid Agency considers cash, bank accounts, investment accounts and whole-life insurance policies resources. Other resources include real property, mutual funds, mineral rights, promissory notes, stocks and annuities.

Citizenship and Identity

• Children must be Alabama residents to qualify for Medicaid. Guardians must show proof of residency and citizenship. Acceptable forms of identification include a birth certificate, a certification of report of birth, the child's school identification card or school day care records. If the child is adopted, the agency accepts a final adoption decree as proof of identity. If a guardian cannot provide an acceptable form of documentation, she may sign an affidavit affirming the child's identity.

Other Insurance

• If the child is insured by another health insurance program, the parent or guardian must meet certain requirements. Medicaid benefits are secondary to the other health insurance plan. Parents must notify the health insurance provider about the other insurance policy. Medicaid pays where the other policy falls short. Parents who cancel another health insurance plan to enroll a child in Medicaid face a three-month waiting period for benefits.