Illinois Department Of Public Aid

Public aid is the assistance, which is provided to the families in need. The families availing of public aid usually have very low income, which do not suffice emergency needs. Illinois department of public aid is one such department, which helps the common man in various needs.

The Illinois department of Public aid was earlier known as HFS or Health care and Family services. Public aid can be in the form of medical assistance, aid for bearing expenses for prescribed medicines, covering expenditure at nursing homes and other emergency situations like funeral expenses. It is usually provided by the state. An individual or a family intending to avail of a public aid needs to satisfy certain conditions. These conditions differ from state to state.

The Illinois department of public aid provides services in two broad classes:

Looking into matters related to medical issues: The department is entrusted with the responsibility of providing medical coverage to children and adults, provided they qualify for the Medicaid program of the state department.

Programs associated with child support: It also ensures that the children are provided sufficient financial assistance and that both the parents take responsibility of a child 's expenses.

In addition to the above, the Illinois department of public aid is responsible for various other assistance projects.

Medical aid programs:

Illinois department of public aid covers expenses for:

• Immunizations
• Prenatal services
• Organ transplant
• Families not covered by any health insurance plans
• Disabilities
• Nursing services
• Paying off medical bills

Kids Programs:

Financial assistance is provided for visit to the doctor, dental care, hospitalization, doctor's charges, prescribed drugs, inhalers for asthma patients, spectacles. Under this scheme, a monthly premium is required to be paid by the parents. Premium for the not-so-affluent families are less.

Family care schemes:

Under this scheme, the relatives taking care of the children are also covered. A monthly premium is required to be paid. The premium depends on the number of members entitled to receive the aid under this scheme.

In addition, to the above, there are yet other schemes offered by the Illinois department of public aid. Some of them are given below:

• School based Health Services or SBHS
• Local Education Agencies or LEA
• MEDI program
• Individualized Education Program or IEP
• Early Periodic Screening Diagnosis And Treatment or EPSDT
• Health Benefits For Workers With Disabilities or HBWD project
• Supportive Living Program or SLP