Apply for Health Care Plan

Hillsborough Health Care is a comprehensive managed care program for Hillsborough County residents with limited income and assets who do not qualify for other health care coverage, including Medicare and Medicaid. The program is funded by a special sales tax and administered by Hillsborough County.

Applicants must: 

• Be a resident of Hillsborough County
• Be a U.S. citizen or a documented legal resident of the U.S.
• Have income that is at or below 175 percent of the federal poverty guidelines
  • Meet asset allowance guidelines
• Not be eligible for any other health care coverage, including Medicare and Medicaid
  • Medically Needy Program participants may be eligible for the Hillsborough County Health Care Plan
• Provide documentation of Hillsborough County residency using any two of the documents from the acceptable document list.
  View acceptable documentation list
  Valid and current driver’s license or Florida State ID card with Hillsborough County address
  Receipt of mortgage, current lease, or rental payment or letter from a landlord
  • Motel receipts not acceptable
  Proof of home ownership within Hillsborough County
  Homestead exemption document
  Public utility bill in name of applicant or spouse with Hillsborough County address
  Hillsborough County voter registration card
  Proof of enrollment of applicant's children in a school in Hillsborough County
  Residency documented through a social service agency or another County department's case record
  Cancelled mail from a federal, state, or county agency addressed to the applicant or spouse at a local address
  Written verification from a community agency
  Verification from post office of mail received at an address in Hillsborough County by applicant or spouse
  Vehicle registration in the name of the applicant with a residential address within Hillsborough County
  Unity Card/Metropolitan Ministries ID
  • This is a free ID provided to homeless individuals living in Hillsborough County
  Declaration of domicile recorded with the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Hillsborough County

There is no cost to eligible members for services covered by the Hillsborough Health Care Plan.

Hillsborough Health Care covers:

• Primary and specialty care
• Inpatient and outpatient treatment
• Pharmaceuticals
• Other services that are medically necessary

What Does Hillsborough Health Care Count as Income?

When you complete your application you will be asked to identify sources of your income. If you receive income from any of the following sources, it should be listed.

• Wages, tips, money earned through self-employment (less business costs)
• Other types of income such as Social Security/Railroad Retirement and/or Disability
• VA income, pensions, Civil Service, unemployment, child support, alimony, dividends, interest income, stipends
• Money from another person, annuity income, rental income, workers' compensation, estate/trust income, public assistance, and grants, scholarships, and student loans less tuition, books, fees, and other school-related costs
• Income from odd jobs, day labor, temp pools, babysitting, house cleaning, flea market sales, lawn mowing, etc. is also counted.

What counts as assets?

When you complete your application you will also be asked to identify your assets. You should list any of the following assets if you have them.

• Checking and savings accounts, profit sharing accounts, deferred compensation accounts, IRAs, insurance policies with cash value, certificates of deposit (CDs), money market accounts, trusts
• Automobiles, other than the first
• Homes other than the homestead, acreage, trailer if not homestead, lots
• Boats, recreational vehicles
• Stocks and bonds

Apply online

• Use our online client portal ACES, which allows you to create your personal account and apply for the Hillsborough County Health Care Plan (HCHCP) / health care services
  • Use a desktop computer when applying online
• Having trouble? Check out the HCHCP Client User Guide for assistance

When you enroll in Hillsborough Health Care, you will choose one of our neighborhood clinics as your medical clinic. Once you are enrolled and pick your medical clinic, the doctor who sees you there will make any necessary referrals to specialists and, if necessary, arrange for your admission to a hospital. 

Apply