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

Childhood Cancer Lantern
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Nebraska program

Child insurance just above the Medicaid line (CHIP)

Free health insurance for an uninsured child whose family earns too much for ordinary Medicaid.

What it is

Free health insurance for an uninsured child whose family earns too much for ordinary Medicaid.

CHIP uses the same application and Heritage Health plans as Medicaid. It covers children under 19 above the ordinary Medicaid line. DHHS checks household income and whether other coverage is in force.

Eligibility rules
  • Your child must live in Nebraska and be under 19. DHHS uses a tax household rather than simply everyone at one address.
  • The January 1, 2026 chart gives a base ceiling of 213% of poverty: $4,851 a month for three people and $5,858 for four.
  • The printed CHIP limit is a base amount; DHHS also considers the applicable five-percentage-point income disregard. Actually being enrolled in other qualifying coverage is different from an unused offer of employer insurance. The social worker can help DHHS check both before drawing a conclusion.
What you get
  • No premium or copays for covered care.
  • Medicaid benefits, including hospital care, chemotherapy and medicines.
  • Twelve months of continuous coverage once approved.
What the help covers
  • Nebraska uses Medicaid-expansion CHIP. The state plan chooses no cost sharing for covered children.
  • CHIP uses the child Medicaid benefit package, with separate service and approval rules. For planned treatment, your social worker can ask the Heritage Health plan to confirm rides and any meals, lodging or escort costs. Approval of coverage does not approve every service or travel expense.
If you decide to apply
  1. Ask the hospital’s financial counselor to help with the Medicaid and CHIP application on iServe.
  2. Have your child’s ID, Social Security number, current household income and any insurance cards ready.

Nebraska DHHS, on the same application as Medicaid · 855-632-7633 · Official page ↗

After you apply
  • An approval identifies CHIP coverage and a Heritage Health plan. The cancer team’s participation depends on the exact plan.
  • DHHS can confirm the first covered month and whether earlier bills qualify under the approved coverage category. The usual Medicaid decision limit is 45 days; that does not guarantee a bill-payment date. DHHS can also confirm whether another coverage option exists above the income limit.
Good to know

Enrollment in a work plan or other qualifying coverage blocks CHIP. Dropping coverage is a decision to discuss before making a change.

Other details
  • “Kids Connection” is an older name you may still hear.
  • Ordinary Medicaid and CHIP differ on private insurance: Medicaid can sit behind a work plan, while CHIP bars active qualifying coverage.

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

Official sources
Ask your social worker

“Could CHIP cover our child if ordinary Medicaid does not? How would our current insurance affect that, and could you help us compare the choices before applying?”

Why I’m asking: I want to understand which coverage route fits and avoid a gap during treatment.

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

Apply once and report exactly what coverage the child has now.

Your social worker

The hospital financial counsellor can tell you which Heritage Health plan the oncology group takes.

The care team

Records and letters when the application asks for them.

Who decides
Nebraska DHHS, from the same iServe application.
Ask the agency
“If we are over the Medicaid line for my child, please decide this application for CHIP as well.”

How to apply

First step: Apply at iserve.nebraska.gov or call 855-632-7633. Say what coverage is in force today.

  1. Apply once on iServe: the office decides Medicaid or CHIP from the same form.
  2. Say exactly which coverage is in force today, and which is only an offer.
  3. Check the oncology group is in the Heritage Health plan you pick.

Official application / program page ↗

Where it starts: Apply at iserve.nebraska.gov or call 855-632-7633. One application covers Medicaid and CHIP.

What to gather

  • Child's birth certificate or ID and Social Security number
  • This month's income for the tax household
  • Any insurance cards in force

How long: No published decision deadline. Ask the worker for a date in writing.

What a yes looks like

A notice naming CHIP and a Heritage Health plan, with no premium to pay.

What a no looks like, and the next move

If the reason is other coverage, ask exactly which policy the office counted. If it is income, ask about Katie Beckett by name.

Watch out

  • Being enrolled in a work plan blocks it. An offer nobody took up was not found to.
  • It is one application: the office decides Medicaid or CHIP from the same form.
  • Nebraska calls it CHIP now. "Kids Connection" is an old name you may still hear.

Dates that change this

2026-01-01: A legacy plan table sets a lower CHIP funding boundary of 109% for ages 6 to 18 against the current 133% Medicaid cell. That is a funding question inside the agency, not a coverage cut, but it is unresolved. (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

The same coverage as Nebraska Medicaid, with no premium and no copays, up to $5,858 a month for four people.

  • $5,858/month — Household of 4, published base ceiling
  • $4,851/month — Household of 3, published base ceiling
  • $0/month — Premium and copays under the state plan
  • $12 — Months of continuous coverage once approved

Covers: The same services Nebraska Medicaid covers · Chemotherapy and prescriptions · Hospital and specialist care

What it costs the family: No premium and no copays: the state plan elects no cost sharing.

The eligibility facts, as published

Age
birth up to age 19
Age max exclusive
19
Income
MAGI budget group; published base ceiling of 213% of the poverty line. No labelled disregard cells are published.
Insurance status condition
enrolment in a group health plan or other creditable coverage bars it; an employer offer alone was not found to
Residency
Nebraska
Continuous eligibility
12 months
Retroactive months
unknown: the ordinary CHIP start date and any retroactivity were not published
Processing standard
unknown

Decisions this site cannot make: DHHS eligibility determination on the same iServe application

Expect friction on: Being enrolled in a group plan blocks it, so a family with an unused employer offer has to say so carefully

The trap: Being enrolled in other coverage bars CHIP. An employer offer that nobody took up was not found to bar it, so say exactly what is in force.

Where I read this

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