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

Childhood Cancer Lantern
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Colorado program

Low-cost state insurance for your child (Child Health Plan Plus)

Low-cost state health insurance for children under 19 whose income is above the free Medicaid line.

What it is

Low-cost state health insurance for children under 19 whose income is above the free Medicaid line.

Child Health Plan Plus may fit when the county finds your income too high for ordinary child Medicaid. The county also checks other insurance. Its hospital and doctor network can differ from Health First Colorado.

Eligibility rules
  • Your child must be under 19 and live in Colorado. CHP+ considers children above the ordinary child Medicaid range.
  • From April 1, 2026, the published monthly CHP+ base ceilings are $3,458 for one person, $4,689 for two, $5,920 for three, $7,150 for four, $8,381 for five and $9,612 for six. These are screening figures; the program must apply its household and income rules.
  • The base ceiling is 260% of poverty. The applicable five-percentage-point income disregard can extend the comparison to 265%; the program applies the household and income rules.
  • A child already insured by a comparable employer plan generally cannot add CHP+. An offered but unused employer plan needs a separate program review.
What you get
  • No monthly premium or annual enrollment fee.
  • No chemotherapy or radiation copay on the Colorado Access plan at its listed income levels.
What the coverage includes
  • The Colorado Access schedule lists no chemotherapy or radiation copay at its published income levels. Other benefits and plans have their own copay rules.
  • The former annual enrollment fee ended July 1, 2022. There is no monthly premium.
  • Children generally receive a 12-month coverage period, subject to exceptions. Temporary coverage during review and the coverage start date have separate rules.
If you decide to apply
  1. Talk with your financial counselor about CHP+ and describe any insurance your child has or is offered.
  2. Ask the counselor to check the cancer team, pharmacy and proposed start date before you choose coverage.

PEAK or Health First Colorado: 800-221-3943 · Official page ↗

After you ask
  • The same application considers Health First Colorado and CHP+. The program's notice confirms the plan, start date and which earlier services, if any, fall within coverage.
  • Your counselor can check the oncology group and pharmacy because CHP+ and Health First Colorado networks can differ.
Good to know

CHP+ generally is not a second policy alongside comparable employer coverage. The program confirms how an offered but unused plan affects eligibility before you change coverage.

Other details
  • CHP+ does not cover bills from before it starts. Ask the program whether a waiting period applies when a child leaves a work plan.

Federal background: CHIP, called Child Health Plan Plus in Colorado.

Official sources
Ask your social worker

“If the free plan does not fit, would CHP+ cover our child's cancer team, and what costs or insurance restrictions should we weigh? Would you recommend it, and could you help with the application?”

Why I’m asking: I want to compare the actual coverage and costs before choosing a new plan for my child.

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 one application and answer the insurance question exactly.

Your social worker

The hospital financial counselor can file with you and check the network.

The care team

Nothing.

Who decides
The county human-services office decides; the health plan then runs the coverage.
Ask your social worker
“If we are over the line for Health First Colorado, can this application be decided for Child Health Plan Plus, and does the oncology group take it?”

How to apply

First step: File the same PEAK application at co.gov/peak, or call 800-221-3943.

  1. File the one application on PEAK; it screens for both programmes.
  2. Ask the county in writing whether an employer plan you were only offered counts against the child.
  3. Check the oncology group is in the plan's network before you rely on it.

Official application / program page ↗

Where it starts: The same PEAK application as Health First Colorado, or call 800-221-3943.

What to gather

  • Proof of this month's income
  • Insurance cards or the employer's plan documents
  • Colorado address

How long: Unknown. The plan handbook describes at least 45 days of temporary coverage while a decision is made.

What a yes looks like

A notice naming the health plan and the start date. Care before that date is not covered.

What a no looks like, and the next move

If the reason is other insurance, ask whether the county applied the statute (insured by a comparable employer plan) or the handbook wording.

Watch out

  • The handbook and the statute disagree about an employer plan that was only offered. Ask the county to answer in writing.
  • Care before the coverage start date is excluded, so ask what the start date is.
  • The network is not the same as the Health First Colorado network. Check the oncology group first.

If they say no, quote this: Colorado Revised Statutes 25.5-8-109(1): "To be eligible for a subsidy, a child must not be insured by a comparable health plan through an employer."

Dates that change this

2026-01-01: CHP+ has no annual enrollment fee since July 1, 2022, and no monthly premium. Benefit-specific copays remain subject to the plan rules. (not yet confirmed against the final rule)

The numbers and the rules

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

What it is worth

Child health insurance up to the published ceiling: $4,689 a month for two people, $5,920 for three, $7,150 for four, $8,381 for five and $9,612 for six. No copay for chemotherapy or radiation on the Colorado Access plan.

  • $4,689/month — Published ceiling, household of 2
  • $5,920/month — Published ceiling, household of 3
  • $7,150/month — Published ceiling, household of 4
  • $8,381/month — Published ceiling, household of 5
  • $9,612/month — Published ceiling, household of 6
  • $260/year — Published ceiling as a share of the federal poverty level
  • $0 — Copay for chemotherapy or radiation on the Colorado Access plan, every listed income level

Covers: Hospital, clinic, chemotherapy and prescriptions · Temporary coverage during review and the coverage start date have their own rules; the notice confirms any earlier covered services.

Legal protection: Children generally receive 12 months of continuous coverage, subject to applicable exceptions; newborn and temporary coverage have separate rules.

What it costs the family: No monthly premium and no annual enrollment fee; the enrollment fee ended July 1, 2022. Benefit-specific copays still depend on the plan.

The eligibility facts, as published

Age
under 19
Age max exclusive
19
Income
Above the Health First Colorado children's line and at or under the published ceiling (260 percent of the federal poverty level)
Insurance status condition
The statute's subsidy test is that the child is not insured by a comparable employer plan; the plan handbook's "eligible or covered" wording is broader and is not settled
Residency
Colorado
Waiting period
None is imposed here. Colorado's publication of any waiting-period removal was not retrieved.

The trap: The plan handbook says a child must "not have any other health insurance" and elsewhere says "eligible or covered", while the statute's subsidy test is whether the child is insured by a comparable employer plan, not whether one was offered. Ask the county to apply the statute and get the answer in writing.

Where I read this

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