CHIP is a joint federal-state program that provides health coverage to low-income, uninsured children with family incomes too high to qualify for Medicaid. In fiscal year (FY) 2016, CHIP covered 8.9 million children. In FY 2016, CHIP spending totaled $15.6 billion, 92.5 percent paid by the federal government and 7.5 percent by the states and territories. Congress enacted CHIP in 1997 and most recently extended federal CHIP funding in 2018, first for FYs 2018–2023 in the HEALTHY KIDS Act, which was incorporated into the January 22, 2018 continuing resolution (P.L. 115-120), and for an additional four years through FY 2027 in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (P.L. 115-123).
This fact sheet provides information on how CHIP works, who is enrolled in CHIP, federal Medicaid and CHIP matching rates, and CHIP enrollment and income eligibility levels by CHIP program type and state. The fact sheet also reflects changes in the program as a result of the most recent funding renewal laws.