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Wisconsin Department of Health Services

 

Eligibility Management (Income Maintenance) Home >> ACCESS Information >>Using ACCESS

ACCESS:  Your Key to Health, Nutrition and Other Programs

How to use ACCESS

To use ACCESS, open a web browser and go to access.wi.gov.  Click on the button for the tool you would like to use and follow the instructions on the screen.  Keep in mind that all of your information will stay private and secure. 

ACCESS gives you four tools for getting and managing health and nutrition benefits: 

Am I Eligible? 

Am I Eligible? will ask some basic questions about your family, your money and your bills.  Based on your answers, it will tell you if you might be able to get help with the following health, nutrition and other programs: 

  • FoodShare 
  • Medicaid 
  • BadgerCare Plus including Family Planning Services 
  • SeniorCare and other prescription drug assistance programs 
  • Free/Reduced-Price School Meals 
  • Summer Food Service Program 
  • The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) 
  • Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) 
  • Special tax credits

The questions will take about 15 minutes to answer.  Your personal information is not saved after you leave the website.

Apply For Benefits

Apply For Benefits is an online application for FoodShare, Medicaid, BadgerCare Plus (including Family Planning Services).  It will ask detailed questions about your family, your money and your bills.

 For most people, the online application will take 30 to 40 minutes to fill out.  You can sign it electronically, and it will be sent to your local county or tribal agency for processing. 

You may need to talk with someone at your local agency after you submit an application, but in many cases, this can be done over the telephone.  You will usually get a decision about your benefits within 30 days.  

Check My Benefits

Check My Benefits lets you get up-to-date information about your FoodShare, Medicaid, BadgerCare Plus (including Family Planning Services), SeniorCare and Caretaker Supplement benefits.

You can use ACCESS to find out which benefits you’re getting, the date of your next review, why your benefits have changed and whether your worker is waiting for information from you.

Follow the instructions on the screen to create a secure account.  You’ll need to provide:

  • Your name
  • Your Social Security Number and date of birth.  If you don’t have a Social Security Number, you can ask your worker for your PIN and use that instead.
  • Either your ForwardHealth card number, QUEST card number or case number.

Once you have created an account, you can log in any time to check your benefits.

Report My Changes

You can use ACCESS to report changes to your worker.   It is an easy-to-use tool that lets you report changes to your local county or tribal agency.  You can report changes online instead of having to call or go to the local agency or by completing a Change Report form.  Report My Changes makes it easier to report changes for all programs with one easy-to-use website, and it helps you keep track of the changes you’ve reported.

 

If you don't have an account, you will need to set up an account (see Check My Benefits above on how to set up an account).  

 

Last Revised: April 28, 2009