Financial Assistance
UChicago Medicine recognizes that patients and their families may need help paying for health services if they do not have health insurance or if their insurance does not cover their entire bill. We offer discounts based on financial need, which may cover all or part of a patient’s account balance(s).
All patients may apply for financial assistance if they have a balance due after their insurer has paid its share of a bill(s). In some cases, such as for children, the individual responsible for paying the patient’s bills (known as the guarantor) can apply for financial assistance.
Financial Assistance Criteria
Proven financial need, household income, family size and other resources determine if a patient can get a discount on their balance due:
- Patients with household incomes at 200 percent or less of the federal poverty level can receive a 100 percent discount.
- Patients with household incomes above 200 percent but below 600 percent of the federal poverty level can receive an 80 percent discount.
- In addition, patients whose UChicago Medicine bills for one year total 20 percent or more of their annual adjusted gross income will not have to pay more than 20 percent of their income for all of those bills.
- Discounts only apply to emergency treatment and medically necessary health care services. Non-medically necessary services, such as cosmetic procedures, are not discounted.
Patients who receive financial assistance cannot be charged more than the amounts generally billed by UChicago Medicine.
Applying for Financial Assistance
Financial Assistance Frequently Asked Questions
We also offer the options of monthly payment plans and applying for financial assistance based upon family size and income.
We know most medical costs are unexpected, and understanding your medical bills can be complicated. Our financial team wants to help you meet your treatment needs and billing specialists and financial counselors are available to help answer your questions.
