Each and every state has a Medicaid program. Some states do not post vital information about their Medicaid program on the state’s website. New Hampshire, on the other hand, makes it very easy to find out key information about their Medicaid program. It’s so nice when states want to help people!
Medicaid is a public, or government run, form of health insurance. It is designed to cover individuals and families that are low income and who cannot afford to purchase a health plan from a private insurance company. Medicaid is funded, in part, by the federal government. It is also funded, in part, by the government of an individual state.
In New Hampshire, the Medicaid program is administered by the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services. It is really easy to navigate through the state’s website in order to find important information about their Medicaid program.
The first page almost immediately lists the services that are covered by Medicaid. It says that the services Medicaid covers “range from preventive medical care for children to institutional care for the elderly and disabled”. Some of what it covers includes: hospital, physican, nursing facility, home health, lab, x-ray, prescriptions, medical transportation, medical supplies, durable medical equipment, hospice services, and personal care attendants.
New Hampshire also covers plenty of things in their Medicaid program that some other states choose not to cover. Some of it includes: family planning, extended services to pregnant women, certified midwife, newborn home visits, and EPSDT (early periodic screening and diagnostic testing). It covers dental, vision care, audiology, podiatry, and the cost of an interpreter. It covers physical and occupational therapy, psychotherapy, adult medical day care and more.
To be eligible for Medicaid, an adult must be a United States citizen or qualified alien. The person must live in New Hampshire (and must not be getting Medical Assistance from another state). Some programs have an age limit. The person must have a Social Security number. There are also income limitations and household resource limitations.
Children can qualify for Medicaid coverage if they are under 19 years of age. The child must also be a United States citizen and must live in New Hampshire. The child must have a Social Security Number. A child might qualify for Medicaid regardless of insurance status. There also are income limitations that the child’s family would have to fit into.
Image by Normal B. Leventhal Map Center at the BPL on Flickr