Written by a parent, not a doctor. Nothing here is medical advice.

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Alabama program

Child coverage above the Medicaid line (ALL Kids)

Alabama's health insurance for children above the Medicaid income line (ALL Kids).

What it is

Alabama's health insurance for children above the Medicaid income line (ALL Kids).

ALL Kids covers children whose income is above the Medicaid line. The same application checks both programs. Unlike Medicaid, ALL Kids cannot approve a child while other comprehensive health insurance is in force.

Eligibility rules
  • Children must be under 19 and live in Alabama.
  • Upper monthly limits effective February 1, 2026: 2 people $5,717; 3 $7,218; 4 $8,718; 5 $10,218; 6 $11,719.
  • For four people, the Low Fee band ends at $4,290 monthly. The higher Fee band ends at $8,718.
  • Current comprehensive insurance generally blocks ALL Kids. An unused employer offer differs from enrolled coverage. Separate dental or vision insurance and certain dependent-maternity situations need their own check with ALL Kids at 888-373-5437.
What you get
  • The usual yearly premium is $52 or $104 per child. Qualifying No Fee children pay no premium.
  • The family premium maximum is $156 or $312 a year.
  • Coverage includes hospital care, prescriptions and other child health services.
What the help includes
  • The yearly premium is $52 a child (up to $156 a family) in the lower band and $104 a child (up to $312) in the higher band; some children pay nothing. Premiums and copays together never exceed 5% of your family's income in a year.
  • Chemotherapy given in the clinic has no copay. Medicines taken at home have small pharmacy copays, from nothing up to $25 a prescription depending on your fee group, and some drugs are not covered at all, so ask the pharmacist to check each one.
  • The 2026 booklet lists a $200 inpatient admission copay for Low Fee and Fee families. This is separate from outpatient chemotherapy and prescription charges.
If you decide to apply
  1. Talk through ALL Kids eligibility, existing insurance and treatment access with the social worker before deciding whether to complete the shared form.
  2. Have ready: your child’s Social Security number, Alabama address and current insurance information.
  3. Ask the counselor to check your oncology team’s network and the proposed coverage start date.

Alabama Department of Public Health (ALL Kids) · 1-888-373-5437 · Official page ↗

After you ask
  • An approval notice identifies the fee group and coverage dates.
  • If approved, coverage normally starts the first day of the month after ALL Kids receives the application. ALL Kids does not provide Medicaid-style coverage for earlier bills.
  • The published coverage period is 12 months.
  • Ask ALL Kids what information is missing, when to expect a decision and how to track the request. The annual premium can be paid during the coverage year but must be paid in full before renewal. The approval notice gives your child’s dates.
Good to know

The premium is yearly, not monthly. Existing comprehensive insurance blocks approval, so coverage dates matter when comparing plans.

Other details
  • ALL Kids has no waiting period after other coverage ends. That does not guarantee approval. The counselor can compare eligibility, treatment access and new coverage dates before any insurance change.

Federal background: Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).

Official sources
Ask your social worker

“Would ALL Kids cover our child’s oncology team, and what would we pay compared with our current options? If it is a good fit, could you help us apply without a gap in treatment coverage?”

Why I’m asking: I want to compare the yearly fee, treatment access and coverage dates before changing insurance.

More background and detailed requirements
Additional program information and published rules

Who does what

The three parts, side by side. The agency decides; nobody on this page does.

You

File the same application as for Medicaid and say what other insurance the child has.

Your social worker

The hospital's financial counsellor checks whether the oncology team is in the network before you rely on it.

The care team

Nothing at the application stage.

Who decides
The Alabama Department of Public Health decides; one insurer administers the coverage.
Ask your social worker
“Can you check whether our oncology team is in the ALL Kids network before we drop anything else?”

How to apply

First step: File the Insure Alabama application; it tests Medicaid first and ALL Kids next, with no second form.

  1. File the Insure Alabama application; it tests both programmes at once.
  2. Before the first appointment, check with the oncology office that they are in the insurer's network.
  3. Ask which fee group the notice puts you in, and when the yearly fee is due.

Official application / program page ↗

Where it starts: The same Insure Alabama application as Medicaid. If income is over the Medicaid line the application is tested for ALL Kids.

What to gather

  • This month's income for each adult in the home
  • The child's Social Security number and Alabama address
  • Details of any insurance the child has now

How long: ALL Kids can confirm missing records and the expected decision date. If approved, coverage normally starts the first day of the month after application receipt. The annual premium must be paid in full before renewal.

What a yes looks like

A notice naming the fee group, an insurance card, and a yearly fee to pay.

What a no looks like, and the next move

If the reason is other coverage, ask what happens when that coverage ends; there is no waiting period after a voluntary drop.

Watch out

  • Other comprehensive insurance in force blocks approval, so ask before you drop anything.
  • The fee is yearly, not monthly, and the family total is capped.
  • If approved, coverage normally starts the first day of the month after the application arrives. Earlier bills do not receive Medicaid-style retroactive coverage.

Dates that change this

2026-02-01: The bands are the table published as effective February 1, 2026; the booklet effective October 1, 2025 states the fee groups as percentages instead, and those two do not line up exactly.

The numbers and the rules

The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 11, 2026.

What it is worth

Children's coverage from the Medicaid line up to $8,718 a month for four people, for $52 or $104 a child a year.

  • $4,290/month — Top of the Low Fee band, household of 4
  • $8,718/month — Top of the Fee band and of the programme, household of 4
  • $5,717/month — Top of the Fee band, household of 2
  • $7,218/month — Top of the Fee band, household of 3
  • $10,218/month — Top of the Fee band, household of 5
  • $11,719/month — Top of the Fee band, household of 6
  • $52/year — Low Fee yearly premium, a child
  • $156/year — Low Fee yearly premium, family maximum
  • $104/year — Fee group yearly premium, a child
  • $312/year — Fee group yearly premium, family maximum

Covers: Hospital and clinic care · Chemotherapy and prescriptions · Dental and vision · The insurer's preferred provider network

Legal protection: 12 months of coverage unless the child turns 19 or leaves the state · No waiting period when other coverage was dropped voluntarily

What it costs the family: $52 a child a year in the Low Fee group, capped at $156 a family; $104 a child in the Fee group, capped at $312. Children in the No Fee group pay no premium and no copays.

The eligibility facts, as published

Age
under 19
Age max exclusive
19
Income
Published Low Fee and Fee dollar bands above the Medicaid column, effective February 1, 2026
Insurance status condition
Current comprehensive health insurance generally blocks approval. An unused employer offer is different from enrollment; ALL Kids can check separate dental or vision coverage and dependent-maternity exceptions.
Residency
Alabama
Continuous eligibility
12 months
Retroactive months
If approved, coverage normally starts the first day of the month after the application is received. ALL Kids does not provide Medicaid-style coverage for earlier bills.
Processing standard
unknown: the state says only that processing time varies

Decisions this site cannot make: ADPH ALL Kids eligibility determination through Insure Alabama

Expect friction on: The plan uses one insurer's preferred provider network; check the oncology team is in it

The trap: The fee groups are printed two different ways. The 2026 benefits booklet describes them as percentages of the poverty level; the newer dollar table, effective February 1, 2026, is what the state screens on, and it reaches a little higher. Use the dollars.

Where I read this

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