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

Childhood Cancer Lantern
Search Saved

Texas program

County or hospital-district care for the uninsured

Basic health care through your county or hospital district when other coverage is unavailable.

What it is

Basic health care through your county or hospital district when other coverage is unavailable.

County programs can cover basic doctor, hospital, lab and drug care. Medicaid and CHIP are considered first. A district approval usually covers its own hospitals, so your child’s cancer center may need a different assistance application.

Eligibility rules
  • County residence and no other available coverage are required. The county minimum is 21% of poverty; hospital districts can use higher limits.
  • Harris Health and Nueces Aid use 150% of poverty. Parkland, JPS and CareLink use 250%; Central Health uses 200%.
  • CareLink new applicants show 12 months of Bexar County residence and pay an income-based monthly amount. UMC Lubbock Blue Card requires permanent Lubbock County residence.
What you get
  • Basic care through the county or district’s participating hospitals and clinics.
  • Local discounts or payment arrangements based on income.
What the help covers
  • Harris Health pays its own hospitals and clinics, not Texas Children’s. JPS membership is for JPS locations.
  • Parkland’s policy and application identify its income bands, costs and covered services. The counselor can confirm the operative schedule and how it treats income exactly at 250% of poverty.
  • Central Health MAP visits cost $0 or $10. MAP Basic hospital care depends on the hospital’s own assistance policy.
  • The county minimum includes three prescriptions a month. District programs may cover more; this is not a promise to pay every oncology drug.
If you decide to apply
  1. Ask your hospital financial counselor which county or district covers your address; 2-1-1 can identify the office.
  2. Have residency and income records and any Medicaid or CHIP decision ready.
  3. Ask both the district and the treating hospital whether the approval covers your child’s cancer care.

2-1-1 for the responsible office

After you apply
  • The local eligibility office decides the application. Outside oncology referrals can need separate approval.
  • UMC El Paso and UMC Lubbock use local eligibility and service rules. A district approval is not proof that El Paso Children’s or Covenant Children’s will be paid. Your social worker should confirm current income and residence rules, covered hospitals and doctors, any copays and written approval for the planned oncology service with both organizations.
Good to know

Parkland approval does not pay Children’s Health bills. CareLink covers University Health, not CHRISTUS or Methodist.

Other details
  • JPS facility copays and separate doctor charges need checking against the schedule in force for the service date. The older posted handouts should not be treated as a current quote. For Parkland, the counselor should confirm how the current policy treats income exactly at 250% of poverty and which services an approval includes.
  • JPS Connection, Central Health and Nueces Aid do not by themselves establish payment at Cook Children’s, Dell Children’s or Driscoll. Your social worker can ask both organizations about the exact oncology service, doctors and any written outside referral.
Official sources
Ask your social worker

“Which local program covers our address, and would it pay at our child’s current cancer hospital? Could you compare it with that hospital’s own assistance?”

Why I’m asking: I do not want an approval for a different hospital to leave our treatment bills unpaid.

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

Confirm which county or district covers your address and supply residence, income and the Medicaid or CHIP decision.

Your social worker

Identifies the right local program and asks whether the leukemia center is an approved provider.

The care team

Documents the treatment and referral for authorization at an outside oncology center.

Who decides
The county or hospital district eligibility office
Ask your social worker
“Which county or hospital district covers our address, and will it authorize care at the hospital where my child is already treated?”

How to apply

First step: Call 2-1-1 for the county indigent office or hospital district for your address, and ask whether the leukemia center is an approved provider.

  1. Call 2-1-1 for the county indigent office or hospital district for your address, and ask whether the leukemia center is an approved provider.

Where it starts: 2-1-1 for the responsible office

What to gather

  • Proof of county residence
  • Income and savings
  • The Medicaid or CHIP decision letter
  • Treatment referral and bills

How long: Ask the district for its receipt date and missing-document deadline. JPS publishes an application and facility copays; its newer edition and the UMC program details still need confirmation.

What a yes looks like

An enrollment naming local providers, services, copays and dates. It is not a statewide insurance card.

What a no looks like, and the next move

Ask whether the wrong district, residence, income rule or an unapproved provider caused it, and which local review applies.

Watch out

  • Apply for Medicaid and CHIP first. The county program serves people no other program covers.
  • A district approval pays the district's own providers. Harris Health approval does not pay Texas Children's, Parkland does not pay Children's Health, and CareLink pays University Health only.
  • District limits differ. UMC El Paso’s current ceiling and UMC Lubbock’s stated FPL percentage/copays remain unverified; ask for the current guidelines. JPS membership is limited to JPS locations, with no Cook approval established.
  • JPS’s posted facility schedule, effective October 2023 and updated January 2024, shows $0 routine outpatient visits in all four tiers. Connection 3 and Supplemental show $25 urgent care, $100 emergency, up to $200 for the first inpatient day and $10 per radiation/chemotherapy visit; Connection 1/2 show $0 for those services. Confirm current tier and separate physician bills.

The numbers and the rules

The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 10, 2026.

What it is worth

Basic doctor, hospital, lab and drug care from the county's or district's own providers for very poor uninsured residents. District lines: 250% at Parkland, JPS and CareLink, 200% at Central Health, 150% at Harris Health and Nueces Aid.

Covers: Physician and hospital basic services · Laboratory and imaging · Three prescriptions a month (county minimum) · District programs may cover more

What it costs the family: District rules may include copays: Parkland office visits $0 to $20 by level, Central Health MAP $0 or $10, CareLink an income-based monthly payment.

The eligibility facts, as published

County residency
yes
Income
county minimum 21% FPL; districts higher (Harris 150%, Parkland 250%, JPS 250%, CareLink 250%, Central Health 200%, Nueces 150%)
Other coverage
none available
Districts
harris: Harris Health: 150% FPL; pays Harris Health providers only; dallas: Parkland Financial Assistance: up to 250% FPG (policy 2025-05; website says below 250%); Dallas County residents; office copay $0/$5/$10/$20 by level; pays Parkland only, not Children's Health; tarrant: JPS currently linked application (2024-01 URL): Tarrant County residence and monthly gross income no more than 250% FPIL. Membership is valid at JPS Health Network locations; no Cook approval established.; bexar: University Health CareLink: 250% FPL; new applicants show 12 months of Bexar residence; income-based monthly payment; covers University Health only, not CHRISTUS or Methodist; travis: Central Health MAP / MAP Basic: at or below 200% FPL; Travis County; MAP primary care $0 or $10; MAP Basic hospital care depends on each hospital's own assistance policy; Dell Children's acceptance not published; el paso: UMC El Paso Charity Care Program: current income ceiling, residency requirements and El Paso Children’s participation were not verified in the retrieved research. Ask UMC for the applicable policy.; lubbock: UMC LCMI Blue Card January 2026 guidelines require permanent Lubbock County residence. A stated FPL percentage and copays were not verified; the document has dollar-income limits. Covenant Children’s coverage remains unconfirmed.; nueces: Nueces Aid: 150% FPG; Nueces County residents; Driscoll acceptance not published
Jps facility copays
effective date: 2023-10-01; updated: 2024-01; columns: Connection 1; Connection 2; Connection 3; Supplemental; rows: Outpatient visit primary or specialty care; $0; $0; $0; $0; Urgent Care; $0; $0; $25; $25; Emergency; $0; $0; $100; $100; Inpatient Admission - 1st day; $0; $0; $200 maximum; $200 maximum; Inpatient Admission - additional days; $0; $0; $0; $0; Observation; $0; $0; $0; $0; Outpatient surgery, cardiac catheterization, angio, and I/R; $0; $0; $100; $100; Colonoscopy and mammogram preventive screenings; $0; $0; $0; $0; Physical therapy (Per visit); $0; $0; $5; $5; Radiation and chemotherapy (Per visit); $0; $0; $10; $10; Lab, radiology, and other tests or treatments (Level I and II); $0; $0; $0; $0; Lab, radiology, and other tests or treatments (Level III); $0; $0; $25; $25; Diabetic supplies; $0; $10; $10; according to plan documents; Prescription drugs tier I limit 5, 30-day supply; $0; $5; $5; according to plan documents; Prescription drugs tier II limit 5, 30-day supply; $0; $10; $10; according to plan documents; Prescription drugs tier III limit 5, 30-day supply; $0; $20; $20; according to plan documents; scope: Posted facility schedule, not total physician charges; confirm the current tier and bill.

The trap: Apply for Medicaid and CHIP first. The county program serves people no other program covers.

Where I read this

← Back to your options