RALEIGH, N.C. —  Families with children receiveing N.C. Health Choice coverage will have access to more health services.

Starting April 1, thousands of children receiving N.C. Health Choice coverage will be moved to N.C. Medicaid and will have additional physical and behavioral health services available, according to a news release, which also says the switch will help these families save money. 

“This is an exciting change and allows NCDHHS to provide additional benefits to children moving from NC Health Choice to Medicaid,” Deputy Secretary for NC Medicaid, Dave Richard said. “This includes assistance getting to and from medical appointments through Non-Emergency Medical Transportation services and Early and Periodic Screening."

N.C. Medicaid, funded through the federal Medicaid program, and N.C. Health Choice, funded through the federal Children’s Health Insurance Program are two similar, but different, medical programs that offer coverage for eligible children, according to the release. 

After the fund included in the state budget was approved in July 2022, the state health department was directed to move N.C. Health Choice beneficiaries from the N.C. Health Choice program to the Medicaid program.

North Carolina joins 17 other states that have combined their Medicaid and CHIP programs for children.

Families with children moving from the N.C. Health Choice to Medicaid will no longer have to pay enrollment fees or co-pays for medical visits and prescriptions. They will also have access to enhanced behavioral health services not previously covered by N.C. Health Choice. 

People impacted by this change should get a letter in the mail from their local Department of Social Services in early March with a new Medicaid ID card; The Medicaid ID (recipient ID) will not change. 

For more information, visit N.C. Health Choice.