Here’s How to Access Immigrant Health Benefits Programs in Illinois Before The Enrollment Pause

The Health Benefits for Immigrant Adults and Health Benefits for Immigrant Seniors programs cover common medical services like doctor and dental care for immigrants in Illinois over the age of 42. These programs are open to undocumented immigrants, Temporary Protected Status individuals and low-income lawful permanent residents.

But the new state budget for the upcoming year has limited how much money is going toward these programs, so the state is capping how many more seniors can apply, and completely pausing applications for the adult program.

These changes are going to be enforced Saturday, July 1, so if you’re an adult who qualifies and you want to apply, you’ll have to submit your application by Friday, June 30 at 11:59PM CST. Seniors who are interested have a bit more time because the state is only enforcing a limit on the number of applications, not a total pause as with the adult program.

“The impact will be detrimental to those who will no longer have access to vital health care coverage,” said Edith Avila Olea, the policy manager for Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights.

Borderless Magazine answers your questions about the programs and the changes.

What are the Health Benefits for Immigrant Adults and Seniors programs?

These programs provide medical coverage for immigrant adults and seniors regardless of their immigration status, so that includes undocumented immigrants. They are offered through the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services.

Am I eligible for the Health Benefits for Immigrant Adults program?

There are four conditions the adult health coverage program has for eligibility, and these relate to your age, immigration status, residency, and income.

Health Benefits for Immigrant Adults program eligibility requirements:

• You are between the ages of 42-64
• You are one of the following:
  • An undocumented immigrant
  • A Temporary Protected Status individual
  • A lawful permanent resident for less than five years (aka having a green card)
• You are a resident of Illinois
• You meet these income requirements (based on your 2022 annual income):
  • For one person: income is at or below $18,754
  • For a household size of two: combined income is at or below $25,268

**income limit will differ depending on number of household members

Am I eligible for the Health Benefits for Immigrant Seniors program?

There are five conditions the senior health coverage program has for eligibility, and these relate to your age, immigration status, residency, income and assets.

Health Benefits for Immigrant Seniors program eligibility requirements:

• You are 65 years of age or older
• You are one of the following:
  • An undocumented immigrant
  • A Temporary Protected Status individual
  • A lawful permanent resident for less than five years (aka having a green card)
• You are a resident of Illinois
• You meet these income requirements (based on your 2022 annual income):
  • For an individual: income at or below $13,590
  • For a couple: income at or below $18,310

**A note: medical bills can reduce your what counts as your income (meaning that they can be deducted from your total income)

• You meet these asset requirements:
  • Individual: assets below $2,000
  • Couple: assets under $3,000

**Assets like homes or car are not counted

What benefits do these programs provide?

If you’re a part of these programs, these services will be covered:

• Doctor and hospital care
• Lab tests
• Services like physical and occupational therapy
• Home health, mental health and substance use disorder services
• Dental and vision services
• Prescription drugs

The medical coverage has a $0 premium and a $0 co-payment. This means that there is a $0 monthly payment, and a $0 payment for services covered by the plan (like the ones listed above).

So, your usual medical services should be fully covered without you needing to pay anything from your personal funds (depending on the service). It can also cover health care up to 3 months from before you applied.

The programs, however, do not cover long-term care services like nursing home care, or home-based care.

How can I apply for medical coverage through these programs?

You can apply:

• Online at www.ABE.illinois.gov (they estimate that this takes ~30 minutes to complete)

**this website is available in English and Spanish

• By phone: call the Application for Benefits Eligibility Customer Call Center at 1-800-843-6154
• Through an online application assistor
• In person at a local Family Community Resource Center
  • Use this Department of Human Services Office Locator to locate a Family Community Resource Center near you

Who can I reach out to if I have questions?

Here are some ways you can get help with your application:

• Call the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights Family Support Network hotline (1-855-435-7693)
  • Available in English/Spanish/Korean/Polish
• Find an organization to help you in person on this map
• Need help in another language?
  • Check out this list with different organizations in Chicago that help in languages like Arabic, Spanish, Mandarin, Polish, French, Khmer and more.

The Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights also has a website with other resources that can help you apply for public benefits.

You can also reach out to the Illinois Department of Human Services through their help line (1-800-843-6154) or call/email the Department of Human Services Bureau of Refugee and Immigrant Services (1-312-793-7120, DHS.BRIS@illinois.gov).

How will this impact existing members of the program?

For people who are already enrolled in the Health Benefits for Immigrant Adults/Seniors programs, your access to coverage will not be impacted and you will still be a part of the program.

However, the state is making some other changes to what is covered through the programs. Now, there will be co-pays for certain hospital services.

These include:

• Inpatient hospitalization — $250 co-pay
• Hospital emergency room visits — $100 co-pay
• Hospital or ambulatory surgical treatment center outpatient services — 10% co-insurance (so you pay 10% of the cost of the treatment)

The Department of Healthcare and Family Services is also planning on transitioning existing enrollees to the Medicaid Managed Care program in January 2024, which is just another form of medical coverage.

Something else to keep in mind is that as a part of these medical insurance programs, you’ll also be a part of a process where they double check if you still qualify for the program each year. This process is called redetermination or renewal, and redetermination was paused during the pandemic, but resumed in May 2023.

So for example, if you were enrolled in Medicaid on February 22, 2022, the Department of Healthcare and Family Services would double check your eligibility for the program one year later, on February 22, 2023. This date will be different for everyone based on when you enrolled.

Olea recommends updating your address and other relevant information on the Healthcare and Family Services portal online if you’ve moved in the past year to ensure you get the necessary information through the mail, and to reach out to the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights Family Support Network hotline (1-855-435-7693) if you have questions.

Because enrollment will be paused for the healthcare program for adults, Olea notes that it is especially important to keep your information up to date so that you won’t get blocked out of your coverage if the renewal process doesn’t go through.

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