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

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Maine program

Coverage for an uninsured child (CHIP through MaineCare)

Maine’s children’s insurance program uses the same application and coverage as MaineCare.

What it is

Maine’s children’s insurance program uses the same application and coverage as MaineCare.

Maine places an eligible uninsured child in the right category through one application. CHIP is part of MaineCare, so there is no separate plan to choose. A child eligible for another Medicaid category goes there first.

Eligibility rules
  • Your child must be uninsured, live in Maine and be under 19.
  • The income standard is 300% of poverty, published as 305% with the allowance. It uses the same household limits as child MaineCare.
What you get
  • No premium, deductible or copays.
  • Hospital care, chemotherapy, clinic care and prescriptions.
  • No waiting period before eligibility can begin.
What the help includes
  • CHIP uses the same health plans and doctors as MaineCare.
  • Coverage continues for 12 months regardless of changes in household income.
If you decide to apply
  1. Ask the hospital financial counselor to help with the MaineCare application at My Maine Connection.
  2. Have current income information and any earlier insurance end date ready.

Office for Family Independence: 1-855-797-4357 · Official page ↗

After you ask
  • The Office for Family Independence decides the category on the MaineCare application.
  • There is no premium and no waiting period after other insurance ends.
Good to know

CHIP and ordinary MaineCare use one application. OFI decides the category; applying for CHIP is not a separate insurance choice.

Other details
  • CHIP currently allows up to three months of coverage before the application month when the child qualified in those months. From January 1, 2027, Maine has announced shorter retroactive periods for affected MaineCare categories. The caseworker confirms the period that applies to your child’s CHIP category and application date.

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

Official sources
Ask your social worker

“If my child needs insurance, what would CHIP through MaineCare cover, and are there drawbacks? Would you recommend the application, and could you help?”

Why I’m asking: I want to know which MaineCare category fits without completing two applications.

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

Say plainly that the child has no insurance, and give the end date of any plan that stopped.

Your social worker

The hospital financial counsellor files with you and follows the decision.

The care team

Records and letters when the application asks for them.

Who decides
The Office for Family Independence, on the same application as MaineCare.
Ask your social worker
“My child has no insurance. Can we file the MaineCare application and let the state decide the category?”

How to apply

First step: File the one application at mymaineconnection.gov. There is no separate CHIP form.

  1. File the one MaineCare application; the state sorts the category.
  2. Say the child has no insurance, and give the date any old plan ended.

Official application / program page ↗

Where it starts: The same MaineCare application at mymaineconnection.gov. The state decides which category fits.

What to gather

  • The child's Social Security number
  • This month's household pay
  • The date any old insurance ended

How long: Coverage can start in the month you apply, with up to three months behind it.

What a yes looks like

A notice naming the category and the dates. The same card and the same plans as MaineCare.

What a no looks like, and the next move

If the no is about being covered elsewhere, ask which other MaineCare category was checked.

Watch out

  • An old three-month waiting period and an old premium schedule still sit in the statute as contingent text. They are not in force.
  • A child already enrolled in an employer plan is outside CHIP, but ask about the other MaineCare categories anyway.

The numbers and the rules

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

What it is worth

The same full coverage as MaineCare, with no premium and no copayments, for an uninsured child under 19.

  • $0/month — Monthly premium
  • $3 — Retroactive coverage before the application month

Covers: Hospital, clinic and chemotherapy · Prescriptions · The same health plans and providers as MaineCare

Legal protection: No copayments or deductibles · 12 months of coverage whatever happens to household income

What it costs the family: No premium, no copayment, no deductible.

The eligibility facts, as published

Age
under 19
Age max exclusive
19
Income
household income at or under 300% of the poverty level, the same standard as child MaineCare; the state publishes 305% with the allowance
Insurance status condition
for the CHIP classification the child must be uninsured; a child covered under an employer group plan is excluded, and a child eligible for a Medicaid category is placed there first
Residency
Maine
Continuous eligibility
12 months without regard to changes in household income
Retroactive months
up to 3

Decisions this site cannot make: Office for Family Independence determination on the same application

Expect friction on: Working out whether the child counts as covered by an employer plan

The trap: The statute still displays an old three-month waiting period and an old premium schedule, both marked as text that applies only on a contingency. Neither is in force: Maine removed premiums and waiting periods back to March 1, 2023. If someone quotes the old rule, ask them to check the adopted Part 5.

Where I read this

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