Medicaid (MO HealthNet)
If you received Medicaid prior to being incarcerated, your benefits were suspended, rather than terminated. That means when you are released, your Medicaid benefits will be automatically re-instated. You do not have to do anything for this process. It is up to the Department of Corrections to notify the Department of Social Services within 45 days of your release that a MO HealthNet recipient will be leaving prison. Talk to your case manager if you think that is the case for you to make sure there is no gap in coverage when you are released.
If you aren’t able to apply for Medicaid prior to your release, you can quickly do so online or in person. If you have access to the internet, visit: www.mydss.mo.gov/qualify and select which benefits you are applying to.
Thanks to a ballot measure passed in August 2020, Missouri expanded access to Medicaid, meaning that any individual who lives at 138% of the federal poverty level qualifies for Medicaid health insurance. That means any individual who earns up to $17,236, or a family of 4 who earns less than $35,535. If you are permanently disabled or blind you may qualify. Additionally, your children under 18 may qualify. If you don’t qualify for Medicaid, there are other options in St. Louis to access quality, affordable health care, discussed below.
Gateway to Better Health: Temporary Health Insurance
Gateway to Better Health is a temporary health care program for uninsured adults in St. Louis City and County. It provides uninsured adults a bridge in care until they are able to enroll in health insurance available through the Affordable Care Act. The program covers primary, specialty, and urgent care services.
Who is eligible?
Individuals between 19-64 living in St. Louis City or St. Louis County who
What is covered?
What does it cost?
There are no premiums for the program. Copays for Gateway to Better Health are between $0.50-$3.00 per visit.
Where can I go?
How do I apply?
To apply for Gateway to Better Health, visit one of the participating health centers above. You may need to provide some documents. These include:
Things to Remember
The Affordable Care Act (Obamacare)
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) was signed into law by President Barack Obama in 2010 and allows millions of uninsured Americans to obtain healthcare coverage. Lower-income individuals and families can qualify for extra savings on health insurance plans through the Marketplace.
What is the Marketplace?
It is a service that helps people shop for affordable health insurance. The federal government operates the Marketplace, available on www.healthcare.gov, for most states. Essentially, this is where people go to buy health insurance if it is not offered through their job or if they do not qualify for Medicaid/Medicare.
How do I get to the Marketplace?
To enroll or locate resources from the Marketplace, visit www.healthcare.gov or call 1-800-318-2596 for assistance 24 hours a day.
Is there any special information for formerly incarcerated people?
On www.healthcare.gov, you can find information about health coverage for incarcerated or formerly incarcerated people. If someone is incarcerated, they cannot use the Marketplace to buy a private insurance plan. They must wait until after they are released. After being released, you have a 60-day special enrollment period to sign up for private health coverage. During this time, you can enroll in private health insurance even if it’s outside of the enrollment period. More information can be found at www.healthcare.gov/incarcerated-people.