Massachusetts CHIP: Children's Health Insurance Program

MassHealth Family Assistance is the coverage type that uses CHIP federal funding for children between approximately 150% and 300% FPL. It provides the same comprehensive benefits as MassHealth Standard — including EPSDT dental, vision, and behavioral health services — with minimal cost-sharing.

Unlike states where CHIP has a distinct identity (KidsCare, FAMIS, CoverKids), Massachusetts has fully merged CHIP into the MassHealth system. There is no separate CHIP enrollment, no separate CHIP card, and no separate CHIP customer service line. All children's coverage flows through MassHealth.

MassHealth Standard (for children at or below 150% FPL) has no monthly premiums — if any child in a household's premium billing family group is at or below 150% FPL, premiums for all children under 19 in that group are waived. Above 150% FPL, MassHealth Family Assistance premiums are set using the lowest FPL percentage among the children in the household.

Well-child visits, immunizations, and preventive services are not subject to co-pays for children in any MassHealth program. Small co-pays may apply to some non-emergency services.

Apply for MassHealth at mahix.org/individual/ using your MA Login account. You can also apply by calling MassHealth at (800) 841-2900 or by visiting a MassHealth Enrollment Center in person. A single application covers all eligible household members for MassHealth and ConnectorCare.

Eligible children can apply for MassHealth regardless of their parents' immigration status. Parents applying only for their children do not need to provide their own Social Security numbers. MassHealth has maintained this policy for years and explicitly addresses it in its eligibility guidance.

CHIP — the Children's Health Insurance Program — is a federal-state partnership that covers children in families whose income is too high for Medicaid but too low to afford private insurance. Congress created CHIP in 1997 under Title XXI of the Social Security Act. Like Medicaid, CHIP is jointly funded by the federal government and each state, and each state administers its own program.

CHIP serves children up to age 19 (some states cover to 21 for children in foster care). It is not available to adults — CHIP is specifically designed to address the coverage gap for children in working families. Nationally, CHIP covers approximately 7 million children, according to CMS data.