If you had Medicaid when you delivered in Illinois, you do not need to file a separate application to add your newborn to Medicaid in Illinois: your baby is automatically covered until their first birthday, and the hospital usually starts the enrollment before you leave. If you were not on Medicaid at delivery, you apply for the baby through the state’s benefits portal or the All Kids Hotline, and most newborns qualify because Illinois covers children at income levels well above what many parents expect.
When Enrollment Is Automatic
A baby born to a mother who had Medicaid at the time of delivery is a “deemed newborn” and is eligible for medical coverage through age one with no written application, no income verification, and no Social Security number required during that first year.1Illinois Department of Human Services. PM 18-03-03 Adding Newborn to Family Health Plans The state only needs the newborn’s last name, date of birth, and sex to attach the baby to the mother’s case.
Deemed eligibility applies if the mother was covered under Moms & Babies, FamilyCare, All Kids Assist, ACA Adult, or Former Foster Care coverage at delivery.2Illinois Department of Human Services. Cash, SNAP, and Medical Manual – Who is Eligible (Moms and Babies) There is one exception. If the mother was on Family Health Spenddown, whether or not the spend-down amount was met, the baby is not automatically deemed. In that case you have to submit a signed request to add the child and provide a Social Security number or proof you’ve applied for one.
How the Hospital Handles It
Hospitals with access to Illinois’s Application for Benefits Eligibility (ABE) system file a Record of Birth through the Provider Portal. The state’s Integrated Eligibility System (IES) then tries to match the newborn to the mother’s active case and add the baby automatically.1Illinois Department of Human Services. PM 18-03-03 Adding Newborn to Family Health Plans
When IES can’t make the match, it creates a Newborn Exception task and a worker in the state’s Newborn Unit reviews the record and adds the baby manually. The automated path is the normal one, but even when it fails, someone at the state is flagged to finish the job.
If Your Baby Still Isn’t Enrolled
If a couple of weeks have passed since the birth and your baby doesn’t show up on your coverage, don’t wait any longer. You have three ways to push it through:
- File Form HFS 243C, the state’s Request for Medical Benefits for Another Family Member. Include your case number from your All Kids or Medicaid card and any supporting documents the form asks for, and send it to the office that handles your coverage.3Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services. Add a Family Member
- Call the All Kids Hotline at 1-866-255-5437 (TTY: 1-877-204-1012). They can tell you which office is managing your case and what to do next.
- Report the change through your account at abe.illinois.gov.
The usual reason automatic enrollment fails is that the hospital’s birth record didn’t match the mother’s existing Medicaid case. Having your case number in front of you when you call makes the fix much faster.
Applying When You Weren’t on Medicaid
Deemed eligibility only works if the mother already had Medicaid at delivery. If you didn’t, you apply for the newborn directly, and the state will ask for more documentation: proof that you’ve applied for the baby’s Social Security card and verification of household income.
If the baby is a U.S. citizen and citizenship isn’t documented yet, the state runs an inquiry through the Social Security Administration when an SSN is available. If no SSN exists yet, you’ll be asked for proof of citizenship and identity, but the baby can be added while that documentation is still pending.4Illinois Department of Human Services. PM 18-03-03-a Required Verifications
To apply, start a new application at abe.illinois.gov or call the All Kids Hotline at 1-866-255-5437 for help.
Will Your Family Qualify?
Illinois covers infants under several programs, and the income range is wider than many families assume.
Moms & Babies covers infants in families with income up to roughly 200% of the federal poverty level. For 2026, that is about $3,628 per month for a family of two or $4,583 per month for a family of three, and the program charges no premiums or co-pays.5Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services. Moms and Babies
Families above that line may still qualify under All Kids Assist, which uses a MAGI income standard of 318% of the federal poverty level (313% plus a 5% standard disregard).6Illinois Department of Human Services. PM 15-06-01-d All Kids Assist Standard For a family of three in 2026, 318% of the FPL is roughly $86,900 per year.7U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 2026 Poverty Guidelines Above that threshold, Illinois offers additional All Kids tiers (Share, Premium Level 1, and Premium Level 2) with modest premiums and co-pays, extending coverage to essentially all children in the state regardless of income.
Before Your Baby Turns One
Deemed newborn coverage is generous but temporary. Before your child’s first birthday, the state’s Integrated Eligibility System runs an automatic redetermination (a REDE) to decide whether the child qualifies for continued coverage under a standard medical program.8Illinois Department of Human Services. WAG 18-03-03 Adding Newborn to Family Health Plans
At that point the rules change. The child now has to meet income eligibility, and you’ll need to provide a Social Security number (or proof you’ve applied for one). If you haven’t already submitted a Form 243 or an ABE request to formally add the child, the state will ask for that too. Families who coast through the first year without doing any paperwork sometimes get caught off-guard. Submitting the baby’s SSN and a formal request to add them to your case well before the first birthday prevents a scramble.
A Note on Immigration Status
A baby born in the United States is a U.S. citizen regardless of the parents’ immigration status, and a U.S. citizen child can qualify for Medicaid on their own. Federal Medicaid guidance states that applying for Medicaid or CHIP for your child does not make anyone a “public charge” and does not affect a parent’s chances of becoming a lawful permanent resident or U.S. citizen.9Medicaid.gov. Overview of Eligibility for Non-Citizens in Medicaid and CHIP
When you apply for the child, the state can only ask for information needed to determine the applicant’s eligibility and should not require citizenship or immigration details from non-applicant household members. Any request for a non-applicant parent’s Social Security number must be voluntary, used only for the child’s eligibility determination, and come with clear notice of those limits.
If You’re Denied
If a newborn’s application is denied or a covered service is refused, you can challenge the decision. Most Illinois Medicaid recipients are enrolled in a managed care organization (MCO), and for those children you first file an appeal directly with the health plan within 60 calendar days of the adverse determination notice. If the plan upholds the denial, you can request a State Fair Hearing within 120 calendar days of the plan’s appeal resolution. To keep services running during the hearing, file that request within 10 days of the resolution notice, though you may be responsible for costs if the hearing doesn’t go your way.10Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services. MCO Grievance and Appeals Process
State Fair Hearing requests for medical services go to the HFS Bureau of Administrative Hearings by phone at 1-855-418-4421 (TTY: 1-800-526-5812), by fax at (312) 793-2005, or by email at HFS.FairHearing@illinois.gov.