Tennessee program
St. Jude's no-bill policy
St. Jude says families of accepted patients never receive its bill for treatment, travel, housing or food.
What it is
St. Jude says families of accepted patients never receive its bill for treatment, travel, housing or food.
St. Jude’s no-bill policy applies to children accepted as its patients. No financial assistance application is required. A separate doctor or another treatment site can raise a different billing question.
Eligibility rules
- Your child must be accepted as a St. Jude patient. This policy is not a promise of admission.
What you get
- No St. Jude bill for treatment, travel, housing or food under its policy.
- Automatic assistance without a separate financial assistance application.
What the help covers
- The no-bill commitment concerns care St. Jude provides or approves. Outside bills require a separate check.
If you decide to apply
- If a bill or coverage question arises, St. Jude’s social worker or financial assistance office can review it with you.
- The bill helps the office identify St. Jude charges, approved affiliate care and independent outside care.
St. Jude financial assistance and insurance questions: 901-595-3345. · Official page ↗
After you ask
- There is no separate financial assistance application for an accepted patient.
Good to know
Affiliate care must be approved by St. Jude in advance. The policy does not follow you to every hospital.
Other details
- This is St. Jude’s own hospital policy, not a statewide Tennessee entitlement.
- Assistance is automatic for accepted patients. St. Jude must approve affiliate care before the service. Its office can confirm the policy dates, any approval period and whether a separate outside bill is included.
Official sources
“Which of our child’s care and travel would St. Jude cover, and could any outside bills remain? Could you help us understand the policy and check any bill that arrives?”
Why I’m asking: I want to understand where the no-bill policy ends so outside charges do not surprise us.
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
Nothing to file. Keep any bill that arrives and ask the social worker where it came from.
Your social worker
The social worker sorts out any bill and checks affiliate care is authorized first.
The care team
Records and letters when the application asks for them.
- Who decides
- St. Jude.
- Ask your social worker
- “This bill arrived. Is it St. Jude care, an outside doctor, or an affiliate visit that needed authorizing first?”
How to apply
First step: There is nothing to apply for. Keep any bill that arrives and ask the social worker where it came from.
- Nothing to apply for. Keep any bill that does arrive and take it to the social worker.
- Before any care at another site, check with St. Jude that it has been authorized in advance.
Official application / program page ↗
Where it starts: Nothing to apply for. Call 901-595-3345 with any question about insurance or financial assistance.
What to gather
- Any bill or statement that arrives
- Insurance cards, which the hospital still bills
How long: It applies from acceptance as a patient. Nothing to wait for.
What a yes looks like
No bill arrives for St. Jude care, travel, housing or food.
What a no looks like, and the next move
A bill arrives anyway. Take it to the social worker and ask whether it is outside care or an unauthorized affiliate visit.
Watch out
- It covers care St. Jude gives or authorizes. Care at another site has to be authorized in advance.
- A bill from an outside doctor is not covered by that sentence. Take it to the social worker the week it arrives.
- It is the hospital’s own policy, not a Tennessee law, so it does not follow you anywhere else.
Each hospital’s own policy
The federal rule sets the floor; each hospital’s policy sets the actual numbers. “Unknown” means the policy could not be read yet: call the number and ask.
| Hospital | Free care up to | Discounts up to | Insured families | Financial counselor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Jude Children's Research Hospital · policy | unknown | unknown | yes | 901-595-3345 |
| Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt · policy | unknown | unknown | yes | 615-936-0910 |
| Dolly Parton Children's Hospital · policy | 250% FPL | 400% FPL | yes | 865-541-8187 |
| Children's Hospital at Erlanger · policy | 300% FPL | unknown | yes | 423-778-5150 |
The numbers and the rules
The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 11, 2026.
What it is worth
No bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food, and no application to make.
Covers: Treatment, travel, housing and food, without a bill to the family
Legal protection: Assistance is automatic: accepted patients are not required to apply
What it costs the family: None from St. Jude for its own authorized care.
The eligibility facts, as published
- Who
- a child accepted as a St. Jude patient
- Application
- none: assistance is automatic
- Limit
- affiliate care is only covered when St. Jude authorizes it in advance
The trap: Two things are not covered by that sentence, and both are worth knowing. The child has to be accepted as a St. Jude patient in the first place, and care given at an affiliate is only covered if St. Jude authorizes it in advance. Any bill that arrives from an outside doctor or an unauthorized visit is the case to take straight to the social worker.
Where I read this
- St. Jude financial assistance policy — St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, read September 10, 2026
- St. Jude financial assistance statement — St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, read September 10, 2026
- What does St. Jude provide? — St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, read September 10, 2026
- St. Jude standard charges — St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, read September 10, 2026