Gold Card Requirements: Who Qualifies For Harris Health Treatment?

Gold Card requirements

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:

  1. Mailing your application
  2. Faxing it to Harris Health 
  3. 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.

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10 thoughts on “Gold Card Requirements: Who Qualifies For Harris Health Treatment?

  1. Bob Reply

    Can someone who has no income at all get approved? I noticed it says you need a pay stub. My friend currently isn’t working.

  2. pete Reply

    They ask for 30 days pay stub but what if the last 30 days included unusual over time which doesn’t reflect yearly amount.

    If they take the last 30 days and apply it across 12 months it would reflect too much to qualify. What can should someone do?

    • Nick Bryant Post authorReply

      I understand your issue. Essentially you worked lots of overtime and made more monthly income than usual. Monthly income you may not be making going forward. I would say contact Harris Health eligibility at 713.566.6509 and run this situation by them. Your past 30 days of monthly income may not reflect your income going forward and I don’t want that from stopping your from getting the care you need.

      In the meantime, if you need to see a doctor soon, let me know the area of town you live in and I’ll send you a list of low cost clinics in Houston that require no health insurance.

  3. Michelle Reply

    Hi my son is unemployed and broke his hand but was denied a gold card why? Because he check he was a citizen!

  4. Muhammad Reply

    Hi, is SSI includes in household income order to determine FPL?

    • Nick Bryant Post authorReply

      Hi Muhammad,

      Yes, when determining eligibility for certain programs and benefits, including the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) guidelines, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is generally considered as part of household income.

      If you have your household income and want to know if you may qualify for Gold Card, use their Gold Card eligibility calculator and this will give you a general idea of whether or not your SSI falls under income limits.

      Even if it does and you need to find a low cost medical clinic just let me know the zip code and I’ll send you a list of clinics.

      Just let me know how I can help.

      Nick

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