Skip to agency navigation
Skip to main content

Official Website

of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

    The .gov means its official.

    Local, state, and federal government websites often end in .gov. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania government websites and email systems use "pennsylvania.gov" or "pa.gov" at the end of the address. Before sharing sensitive or personal information, make sure you're on an official state website. 

    A Brief History of CHIP

    On December 2, 1992, former Gov. Robert P. Casey signed into law House Bill 20 (HB 20), better known as the Children's Health Insurance Act. Legislation initially was sponsored by Rep. Allen G. Kukovich (D) in the House, and Senator Allyson D. Schwartz (D) in the Senate.

    HB 20 created the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), a one-of-a-kind program designed to provide insurance coverage to children whose families earn too much to qualify for Medical Assistance, but who could not afford to purchase private insurance.

    Pennsylvania's CHIP program would later be used as the model for the federal government's CHIP program. Legislation for the federal CHIP program was signed into law Aug. 5, 1997 by former President Bill Clinton.