How to Register a Child with CHIP
View the flowchart here!
I chose to register a child with CHIP, Pennsylvania's state children's health insurance. One can register with CHIP online, on paper or over the phone. I focused on applying online, while Lola recorded the process of filling out a paper application. Applying online was surprisingly straightforward, though I'm sure the paper application was much more confusing and tedious.
The most confusing part of using COMPASS, the online application system, to apply for CHIP was the site itself. COMPASS is only compatible with Internet Explorer or Firefox. Using the "back" and "forward" buttons may cause one to lose all the information they've entered. I have a feeling that someone who isn't very familiar with computers would have quite a bit of trouble. Fortunately, there are tutorials to help people understand how to use the site, as well as YouTube videos that explain where on the site to go and what information to have beforehand.
If I could change one thing about this process, I would make it easier to understand exactly what one is getting. The site has instructions and guides to entering information, but it's hard to understand what one is applying for beyond "health insurance" or "food stamps."
I'd guess that the systems are so complicated because there's so much information out there to define us--aside from the basic things like name, birth date and social security number, pieces of information like what medical procedures we've had and where we work are all part of what identify us as individuals and it's important to be constantly making sure that everything matches up. In addition, there are so many people using the same systems that if we simply gave our names, we'd be indistinguishable from however many other people there are in the state or country that happen to share our name.
I chose to register a child with CHIP, Pennsylvania's state children's health insurance. One can register with CHIP online, on paper or over the phone. I focused on applying online, while Lola recorded the process of filling out a paper application. Applying online was surprisingly straightforward, though I'm sure the paper application was much more confusing and tedious.
The most confusing part of using COMPASS, the online application system, to apply for CHIP was the site itself. COMPASS is only compatible with Internet Explorer or Firefox. Using the "back" and "forward" buttons may cause one to lose all the information they've entered. I have a feeling that someone who isn't very familiar with computers would have quite a bit of trouble. Fortunately, there are tutorials to help people understand how to use the site, as well as YouTube videos that explain where on the site to go and what information to have beforehand.
If I could change one thing about this process, I would make it easier to understand exactly what one is getting. The site has instructions and guides to entering information, but it's hard to understand what one is applying for beyond "health insurance" or "food stamps."
I'd guess that the systems are so complicated because there's so much information out there to define us--aside from the basic things like name, birth date and social security number, pieces of information like what medical procedures we've had and where we work are all part of what identify us as individuals and it's important to be constantly making sure that everything matches up. In addition, there are so many people using the same systems that if we simply gave our names, we'd be indistinguishable from however many other people there are in the state or country that happen to share our name.
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