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Louisiana Medicaid Income Requirements

The United States federal government created the Medicaid program in 1965 to provide medical coverage to low-income families, the disabled, and the elderly. Louisiana adopted Medicaid in 1966 with the Department of Health and Hospitals (DHH) administering the program. The DHH sets income standards for each group applying for Medicaid.

  1. Pregnant Women

    • Pregnant women qualify for the Louisiana Medicaid program if their income does not exceed 185 percent of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) with the first 15 percent of earned income disregarded. Pregnant women do not have to meet any asset limits and qualify for Medicaid through the Child Health and Maternity Program (CHAMP).

    Children

    • Parents who have children between the ages of 0 and 6 may not exceed 133 percent of the FPL to qualify for the program. For children ranging in age from 6 to 19, the allowed gross income for parents drops to 100 percent of the FPL. Parents apply through CHAMP and do not have to meet any asset level requirements. Foster parents automatically receive Medicaid for any dependent foster children without income or asset limitations. Parents may qualify for Louisiana Medicaid through the Child Health Insurance Program (CHIP) if they have an income within 200 percent of the FPL.

    Needy Families

    • Temporary Assistance for Needy Families provides cash payments, food stamps and Medicaid benefits to desperately poor families whose primary earners suffer unemployment or severe underemployment. Louisiana families may qualify for Medicaid on a temporary basis under TANF if their income does not exceed 15 percent of the FPL.

    Medical

    • According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, the blind, elderly and the disabled may not exceed more than 75 percent of the FPL if single or 83 percent if married to qualify for the Louisiana Medicaid program. They may not have more than $2,000 in savings if single or $3,000 in savings if married. Women who have breast cancer or cervical cancer automatically qualify for the program regardless of income.

    Amounts

    • According to the United States Department of Health and Human Services, a single household in Louisiana who makes equal to or less than $10,830 meets 100 percent of the FPL as of 2010. This amount increases by $3,740 for each additional person in the household. A single person meets the criteria for 150 percent of the FPL at $16,245 and 200 percent of the FPL at $21,660 in annual earnings. The federal government considers a Louisiana family of four to be impoverished if their gross annual income falls below $22,050.

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