|  | Healthcare Industry | Health Insurance

Requirements for Healthy Start & Healthy Families

Healthy Start and Healthy Families are both Ohio Medicaid programs for children, pregnant women and parents. Medicaid is a national health insurance program offered in the United States to low-income individuals. It is funded by both the federal government and the states, but the states design most of their own programs. Healthy Start and Healthy Families offer similar benefits but have different requirements. Interested families can apply for both through the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.

  1. Residency and Citizenship

    • Applicants to both Healthy Start and Healthy Families must be residents of Ohio. They must also be United States citizens or lawful immigrants. Providing valid Social Security numbers and proof of current address is part of applying for either program.

    Age Limits

    • Children are the primary focus of both Healthy Families and Healthy Start. In fact, Healthy Start is offered only to children younger than 19 years old or pregnant women. All members of the family can apply for Healthy Families, but the family must include at least one child younger than 19.

    Income Limits

    • Probably the single biggest criteria for Healthy Start or Healthy Families eligibility is income. A family cannot exceed a specified monthly income limit and still be approved for either program. The income limits are based on the current federal poverty guidelines and the size of the family. Healthy Start and Healthy Families have slightly different income limits, however. Minor children and pregnant women need only to make less than 200 percent of the federal poverty level to be eligible for Healthy Start. But households cannot make more than 90 percent of the federal poverty level and be eligible for Healthy Families. In 2011, this translated into a maximum monthly income of $1,805 for a single person wanting to enroll in Healthy Start, but a maximum monthly income of $813 for a single person in Healthy Families.

    Children's Buy-In Program

    • If a family makes too much money to qualify for either Healthy Start or Healthy Families, it can still apply for public health insurance through Ohio's Children's Buy-In Program. Households with a gross income level of more than 300 percent of the federal poverty level that have children not otherwise eligible for Medicaid might qualify. The children also must not be able to get or keep creditable insurance coverage because of a pre-existing condition, have lost coverage because of using all lifetime benefits or participate in a program for mentally handicapped children. The CBI is funded completely by the state of Ohio. Enrollment can be closed at any time due to lack of funds.

Health Insurance - Related Articles