Beacon Therapeutic is a social service agency that has a wide array of services to benefit
children, teens, and families in the Chicagoland area. Beacon’s newest program,
CHIPRA(Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Grant), is an outreach
program funded through a federal grant targeted at improving healthcare across America
by assisting families, children and independent teens who do not have health insurance.

The Beacon CHIPRA Team has all the necessary materials to inform and assist parents or
independent teens through the process of applying for Illinois’s All Kids, a low to no cost
health insurance administered through the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family
Services (DHS). The purpose of the CHIPRA Outreach Team is to assist families in need
in obtaining health insurance, and helping to connect them with an accessible health care
resource. The team visits families in a variety of locations including shelters, community
centers, schools, and homes.

We are trying to reach families that have fallen through the cracks of the health care system. Additionally, we are working to overcome barriers
that prevent families from obtaining health coverage, including lack of transportation,
transience, cultural and linguistic barriers, lack of knowledge and/or understanding of
services, and stigma and fear associated with receiving public services. Our program
utilizes consumers from Beacon’s service population as Peer Advocates to better reach in-
need teens and families.

In these tough economic times, when so many people have lost their jobs, and families
are struggling to make ends meet, CHIP and Medicaid can help you cover the cost of
health care for your kids and teens, even if it’s temporary. Parents don’t have to choose
between paying for groceries or paying medical bills. Beacon staff will meet with teens
or parents in community centers, libraries, schools or homes to share information about
the program, assist with applications and do an electronic submission, which helps with
the tracking and speed of application approval.

Beacon also assists teens and families in connecting with a health care resource once they have been approved for the program.
Beacon brings the office to the people to make the process easier! Beacon is helping
to keep kids, teens, and families healthy through access to regular, quality healthcare.
You can contact Program Supervisor Margaret Dunne, Case Manager Brittany Ward,
or Spanish speaking Case Manager Stephanie Gutierrez at 773-233-3821 for more
information or to schedule a time to meet.