Community HealthChoices (CHC) is one part of Pennsylvania Medical Assistance, also called Medicaid. It helps eligible adults get physical health care and long-term services and supports. It is not the same as Medicare or every other Pennsylvania Medicaid program.
Updated October 21, 2026
This guide uses current CHC sources checked October 21, 2026. CHC serves eligible adults age 21 and older, but age alone does not establish eligibility. Read the full plan name on your card. A carrier may also offer a different Medicaid, Medicare or Marketplace plan. Helen has not checked your enrollment, eligibility, county, providers or personal costs. The state and your plans must confirm which coverage applies to you.
For AmeriHealth Caritas PA CHC, call 1-855-235-5115. For Keystone First CHC, call 1-855-332-0729. For PA Health & Wellness CHC, call 1-844-626-6813. For UPMC Community HealthChoices, call 1-844-833-0523. AmeriHealth Caritas PA CHC and Keystone First CHC have different regional handbooks and phone numbers. These are CHC participant contacts, not a directory for all products sold by each company. Confirm the number on your current card or the linked official contact page.
CHC handles your Medical Assistance coverage; it does not replace your Medicare coverage. Medicare is generally the first payer for Medicare-covered services. Ask your Medicare plan about its coverage, provider rules, referrals and approval requirements. Ask your CHC plan how it coordinates the remaining Medical Assistance benefits for that exact service. A CHC card does not prove that every Medicare charge will be paid or that your final bill is zero.
Pennsylvania uses county-based behavioral health managed care organizations (BH-MCOs) for its Behavioral HealthChoices services. Ask your CHC participant team which BH-MCO serves your county and how to reach it. If you also have Medicare, Medicare is the primary payer for most inpatient and outpatient behavioral health services; check its rules too. If a support is part of your long-term service plan, ask your service coordinator which program handles it. Do not assume every mental health service is billed to the same plan.
Not every CHC participant receives long-term services and supports (LTSS). Eligibility and the services you receive depend on a separate review of your needs and applicable rules. If you receive LTSS, ask your CHC plan to connect you with your service coordinator. Ask: “What is in my person-centered service plan? Who handles a change in my needs? Does this service need approval, and which providers can deliver it?” This guide does not approve home-care hours, a caregiver, nursing-facility care or any other service.
Ask the plan responsible for the service and the provider’s office: “Which exact insurance will you bill? Does this provider take that coverage for this service and location? Do I need a referral or prior approval? Are there separate facility or other charges?” Medicare and CHC can have different provider rules. A provider directory or a familiar company name alone does not confirm your access, approval or total price. Do not change your Medicare coverage just because you have a CHC card.
Keep the bill or notice and call the participant contact for the plan named on it. Ask what the notice means, which plan was billed, whether another payer should be involved and what steps or deadlines apply. Ask for help reaching your service coordinator if an approved LTSS service is not arriving. A bill alone does not establish what you owe. Do not ignore a notice while you seek an explanation; use its instructions and deadlines. This guide does not file an appeal or decide the result.
For CHC program questions, Pennsylvania’s participant call center is 1-800-757-5042. The state lists PA Relay 711. You can also ask your plan for an interpreter or an accessible copy of its handbook. The official state and plan links below let you check contact routes without sending Helen your card, member number, health details or bills.
Name the coverage and service
Read the full plan name on your current card and describe the service or notice you need help with.
Confirm who handles it
Ask your CHC participant team, Medicare plan or county behavioral health plan which program handles that exact service.
Write down the next step
Ask who to contact next, what information they need, whether approval is needed and whether a notice sets a deadline.
No. CHC is Medical Assistance coverage. You may also have Medicare, but your Medicare coverage and its exact rules need separate confirmation.
A CHC card alone does not approve LTSS. Ask about the needs assessment, eligibility decision and person-centered service plan that apply to you.
Use the exact CHC name on your card. Keystone First CHC, for example, has a different participant phone number from AmeriHealth Caritas PA CHC and is not the same product as a Medicare or physical HealthChoices plan.
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