Health Care & Insurance

Evergreen Health Insurance Program	Washington State Health Insurance Pool (WSHIP)
COBRA Insurance Continuation	Medicaid (DSHS)
Veteran's Administration	Employer Sponsored Insurance
Medicare Part D

Unless otherwise noted, all materials and forms on this page are in PDF format.

Links to external resources are provided as a public service and do not imply endorsement by the Washington State Department of Health.

Insurance Premium Payment Program

Evergreen Health Insurance Program (EHIP)

EHIP assists clients with an HIV or AIDS diagnosis to get insurance and pays the fees. Clients must be eligible for EIP. For more information, visit www.ehip.org. Or, call EHIP at 800-945-4256 or 206-323-2834.

Health Care Coverage

COBRA Insurance Continuation

When clients have health insurance through an employer and stop working, they lose their insurance. Through COBRA continuation, clients can pay a fee and keep their insurance for at least 18 months. EHIP may pay the fee for eligible clients. For more information, contact EHIP listed above.

Washington State Health Insurance Pool (WSHIP)

Washington State Health Insurance Pool is a program for people denied health insurance or who have lost other health insurance coverage. EHIP may pay the fee for eligible clients. For more information, visit the WSHIP website or call 800-877-5187. You can also go to WSHIP.org for more information.

Medicaid (DSHS)

Medicaid provides medical coverage, including:

doctor visits
medications
hospital care
long term care
medical equipment.

Applicants must meet eligibility requirements. Some clients may be required to apply to Medicaid. EIP may provide coverage while a client's Medicaid application is pending. For more information, visit the Medicaid website. Or, contact the DSHS Community Services Office (CSO) in your area. Also, you can contact DSHS Customer Service at 1-877-980-9180.

Medicare Part D

Early Intervention Program (EIP) developed a Medicare Guidance. This guidance explains what assistance Early Intervention Program (EIP) can provide for client's HIV care.

Employer Sponsored Health Insurance

Nearly two-thirds of workers under 65 have employer-based health insurance. Employers ensuring employees can require:

a waiting period before benefits take effect
that the employee work full time
that the employee work a specified number of hours per week
that Employees pay a portion of the premium.

Small employers are less likely to offer health insurance. Employer insurance programs insure the majority of workers and EHIP may be able to pay those premiums. Public programs such as Medicaid and the State Children's Health Insurance Program insure many others. Privately purchased insurance is also an option.

Veteran's Administration HIV/AIDS Care

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) provides medical care to people with HIV in the United States. This includes:

patient care activities
clinician and patient education
prevention activities
research of services care delivery to veterans.

The HIV/AIDS efforts, carried out by VA medical facilities across the country, take a comprehensive approach that includes:

Screening for risk of HIV infection
Testing for those at risk
Education for patients and their families
Giving providers access to the best available information about HIV
Excellence in clinical care
Excellence in clinical care
Support for research to improve clinical care
Ongoing quality improvement

Please go to the Veteran's Administration Website for information.

Spenddowns

Early Intervention Program can no longer pay spenddowns that begin on or after April 1, 2009. However, we can pay for HIV-related drugs. Clients can use our payments to help meet their spenddown. Clients can take the EIP Prescription Spenddown Receipt with them to the pharmacy. Instructions are on the form.