Harris Health Gold Card Requirements: Who Qualifies For This Safety Net Insurance Plan?
In this guide, I will explain what are the requirements to receive a Harris Health Gold Card.
The Gold Card is a safety net health insurance plan in Houston/Harris County that provides coverage for low-income, uninsured, and undocumented families.
Keep reading to see if you qualify for Harris Health Gold Card coverage.
Who Manages The Gold Card?
The Harris Health System is the healthcare network that manages the Gold Card. You will have to apply for the Harris Health Gold Card through their eligibility system.
What are the Gold Card requirements?
You must live in Harris County and be considered low-income to receive discounted rates from Harris Health System.
Your address and monthly income are the main factors that will determine if you qualify for the Houston Gold Card.
Here is more information about the 2 Harris Health Gold Card requirements.
Gold Card Is For Harris County Residents
You must live in Harris County to qualify for Gold Card. This is the first requirement.
If you live in Fort Bend, Brazoria, Montgomery, Galveston County, etc you will not qualify for the Gold Card, even if you have a low income. The good news is if you live in another county, they have similar “county clinic” healthcare programs like Harris Health System.
If you live on the border of Harris County, you can use this “What County Am I In” lookup to determine if you will qualify for the Gold Card.
The Harris Health System is funded by Harris County taxes, which is why only low-income Harris County residents can qualify.
Gold Card Is For Low-Income Residents In Harris County
The second eligibility requirement is you must be considered low-income to qualify for the Gold Card in Harris County.
Low-income is having a household income of 150% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines. Below are examples of 150% of the federal poverty level.
These numbers were taken from the FPL Calculator, but you are encouraged to contact Harris Health System to confirm that you qualify.
- 1 person = $19,320
- 2 people = $26,130
- 3 people = $32,940
- 4 people = $39,750
- 5 people = $46,560
What If My Household Exceeds 150% FPL?
If your household income exceeds 150% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines you can still receive medical treatment through the Harris Health System, however, you will not qualify for discounted medical services (Financial Assistance Plan).
How Do I Apply For The Gold Card?
To apply for the Harris Health Gold Card you will need to complete a Gold Card application, provide the supporting documents.
You can then apply for coverage by:
- Mailing your application
- Faxing it to Harris Health
- Dropping your application off at a Harris Health eligibility center
We have a guide titled How To Apply for the Harris Health Gold Card that will walk you through each step of this process.
Conclusion
We hope this guide has been helpful for you to learn about the Harris Health Gold Card Requirements. If there are any questions that we didn’t answer, comment below, visit the Gold Card website, or call the Harris Health System at 713.566.6509.
Similar Articles That May Interest You:
- Can Undocumented Immigrants In Houston Apply For The Gold Card?
- 33 Common Gold Card Questions Answered
- How To Get An Emergency Gold Card
- 37 Harris Health Clinics To Treat You After You Are Approve For The Gold Card
Nick Bryant is a Counselor with 11 years of experience working in community health. He enjoys concerts, walks with the doggo and wife, mocking Dallas Cowboy fans, and sharing community resources. Jump on the Houston Case Managers email list to receive weekly community resource guides delivered directly to your inbox.
