healthy steps: providing a healthier future

story by | dakota medical foundation

As parents, the health and wellbeing of our children is our primary concern. But without health care coverage [about 10% of North Dakota's children are uninsured], your child may not be getting the medical care he needs. In North Dakota, there IS help for children without health insurance!

Healthy Steps [also know as North Dakota’s Children’s Health Insurance Program] is a free or very low-cost assistance program available to uninsured children. Unfortunately, not every family knows about Healthy Steps or they may not be taking advantage of the program because they assume they earn too much money. The only way to determine if Healthy Steps is the perfect option for your children’s health care coverage, is to know the facts and apply. what is healthy steps and who is eligible? Healthy Steps is a health insurance program for North Dakota children who:

• do not have health insurance coverage

• are 18 years of age or younger

• do not qualify or are not fully covered by the North Dakota Medicaid Program

• meet the income requirements does it matter how long my child has lived in North Dakota? It does not matter how long your child has lived in this state. does my child have to be a US citizen? Not necessarily, but you need a Social Security Number for each child for whom you are applying to get Healthy Steps. A child must be a US citizen or an alien who is lawfully admitted for permanent residence. Non US citizens need proof of the lawful status of each child for whom you are requesting assistance [such as a resident alien card or a temporary resident card]. what services does healthy steps cover? Clinic services, inpatient and outpatient hospitalization, prescriptions, mental health services, preventive well-child exams, immunizations, dental and vision services are covered. is there a list of doctors to go to? Yes. Once your child is determined eligible for Healthy Steps, Blue Cross/Blue Shield of North Dakota will mail you a Benefits Book that contains a list of participating providers [which includes 99% of the physicians in North Dakota] and a list of services available through Healthy Steps. are there any rules about pre-existing conditions? No. Healthy Steps does not have any pre-existing condition rules. If a family meets the eligibility guidelines, a child's pre-existing medical condition does not exclude him or her from coverage. what does healthy steps cost? There are no monthly premium costs to participating families. Families may be responsible for modest co-payments for some services. The only out-of-pocket costs are for, emergency room visits [$5 per visit], hospitalizations [$50 per hospitalization] and prescriptions [$2 per prescription]. Due to the unique relationship that exists between the federal government and tribal governments, the co-payment requirement has been waived for American Indian children. what are the income requirements? As of July, 2009, the income guideline increased for eligibility from 150% Federal Poverty Level to 160%. North Dakota also uses NET income to determine eligibility. This means that families can subtract certain expenses such as childcare costs or other health insurance premiums from their income. Many people are surprised to learn that a family