West Virginia Medicaid
About this resource
Medicaid is basic health insurance that is available to foster youth or former foster youth who are eligible.
In West Virginia, the Mountain Health Promise is a special healthcare program that started in March 2021 to support children and youth in West Virginia. It helps kids in foster care, kinship care (being cared for by relatives), and adoptive care get the medical and mental health services they need. The program is run by Aetna Better Health of West Virginia, which is the only managed care organization for MHP.
Members don’t need to enroll
Those who qualify for Mountain Health Promise are automatically enrolled in the program.
Note: Once enrolled in the program, only youth in adoptive care will have the option to opt out.
Who can use this resource (eligibility)?
- The Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires states to provide young adults under 26 with free health care if they were in foster care at age 18 or older. This ensures that former foster youth can access the health care services they need – just like non-foster youth who can stay on their parents’ insurance plans until 26.
Children and youth who qualify for Mountain Health Promise meet at least one of these requirements:
- Are in foster care, kinship care or adoptive care
- Are receiving Socially Necessary Services (SNS) through child welfare support services
- Are eligible for the CSEDW (Children with Serious Emotional Disorder Waiver)
- Youth formerly in foster care up to age twenty-six (26) who aged out of foster care while enrolled in Medicaid in the state of West Virginia.