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

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Louisiana program

Help paying a private insurance premium (LaHIPP)

LaHIPP reviews whether Louisiana can help pay for employer-group insurance for someone with Medicaid.

What it is

LaHIPP reviews whether Louisiana can help pay for employer-group insurance for someone with Medicaid.

A private-plan premium can remain a major expense even when your child gets Medicaid. LaHIPP compares the cost of that plan with Medicaid’s costs. Having access to a plan can matter even if no one has enrolled yet.

Eligibility rules
  • Continuing Medicaid eligibility is required. LaHIPP reviews available employer-group insurance for the Medicaid member or through a responsible party’s employer. Any individual-plan or pilot route needs separate confirmation.
  • LaHIPP checks whether paying for available employer-group insurance is cost effective for Medicaid. Necessary coverage for other family members may be included in that review. The office must confirm the child’s Medicaid category and the exact premium portion it will pay; any individual-plan or pilot arrangement needs its own confirmation.
What you get
  • Payment toward a qualifying premium under the LaHIPP arrangement approved for your family.
  • A written answer about the covered premium amount, months and payment arrangement.
What the help covers
  • The office confirms how the child’s Medicaid coverage will be arranged. The financial counselor can check participating doctors, covered services and approvals rather than assuming a move to a particular payment system.
  • The approval should say which premium amount LaHIPP will pay, which months it covers and whether any part remains your responsibility. It may include necessary family coverage when cost effective. It is not a blanket promise to repay every private-insurance premium or bill.
If you decide to apply
  1. Ask the LaHIPP unit for an application at 1-877-697-6703.
  2. Have the Medicaid notice, premium amount, policyholder’s name and a pay stub showing the premium deduction ready.

Louisiana Department of Health, LaHIPP unit: 1-877-697-6703 · Official page ↗

After you apply
  • Your social worker can help confirm the approved amount, required premium evidence, first covered month and expected payment date with LaHIPP. Keep the approval and payment records. A delay should be checked with the office on that notice rather than assuming the private insurer has been paid.
Good to know

Premium help can affect how coverage is arranged. The cancer team can check the current network, billing and treatment approvals before a change.

Other details
  • Private insurance is billed first. A premium review does not guarantee every doctor or treatment will work with both forms of coverage.
  • The posted employer-group rule, effective April 1, 2017, sets an enrollment period of at least six months. That is not a processing or payment deadline. A parent’s failure to cooperate does not itself end the child’s Medicaid under that rule.

Federal background: Medicaid premium assistance.

Official sources
Ask your social worker

“Could LaHIPP help with a private insurance premium? What would change about my child’s Medicaid, and could you help with the review if the savings make it worthwhile?”

Why I’m asking: I want to compare the premium savings with any change in how treatment is covered.

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

Call the unit, send the premium proof, and say who the policy is in the name of.

Your social worker

The employer benefits office confirms the premium and the plan documents.

The care team

Records and letters when the application asks for them.

Who decides
The LaHIPP unit at the Louisiana Department of Health.
Ask the agency
“Can LaHIPP help with our employer plan, and would joining change our providers or existing authorizations?”

How to apply

First step: Call 1-877-697-6703 the week Medicaid is approved and ask for the application.

  1. Call 1-877-697-6703 the week Medicaid is approved.
  2. The LaHIPP unit confirms whether joining changes the delivery system, providers or existing authorizations.

Official application / program page ↗

Where it starts: Call 1-877-697-6703 and ask for an application. The state links an online portal, but our research could not open it.

What to gather

  • The premium amount and who the policy is in the name of
  • The Medicaid approval notice
  • A recent pay stub showing the premium deduction

How long: No decision clock was published. Ask on the call.

What a yes looks like

An approval stating the eligible coverage, payment amount, payee and start date.

What a no looks like, and the next move

Usually the cost test. Ask what the test compared and whether a different plan option would pass it.

Watch out

  • The LaHIPP unit confirms whether joining changes the delivery system, providers or existing authorizations.
  • The published rule is "have or be able to get" insurance, so ask even if nobody has enrolled yet.

Dates that change this

2026-09-10: Everything published about LaHIPP was reached through a search index rather than the page itself, and the application portal did not open. Treat the conditions as things to confirm on the phone. (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

Louisiana pays for the job-based or individual plan and reimburses the policyholder by direct deposit or cheque.

Covers: Payment of the health insurance premium for a family eligible for or enrolled in Medicaid

Legal protection: Keeping the private plan means keeping its network while Medicaid pays second

What it costs the family: No published cost. The amount paid depends on the premium and the state's cost test, which was not published.

The eligibility facts, as published

Medicaid
eligible for or enrolled in Medicaid
Insurance
Employer-sponsored group coverage is the verified LaHIPP route. The unit confirms whether an individual policy has a separate applicable program.
Cost test
a cost-effectiveness test exists; its formula was NOT FOUND
Delivery change
The LaHIPP unit confirms the current physical-health and behavioral-health delivery arrangements and any effect on existing authorizations.

The trap: The LaHIPP unit confirms whether joining changes the delivery system, providers or existing authorizations.

Where I read this

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