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Medicaid enrollment does not automatically entitle you to a free tablet. It may help you qualify for separate assistance, but healthcare coverage, internet service, and the cost of a device are different benefits.
The expired ACP route
The Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) ended on June 1, 2024. Its internet and device discounts are no longer available, and new applications are closed. Old instructions to apply for ACP using Medicaid are obsolete. There is no ACP application that supplies a tablet, laptop, smartphone, and unlimited service today.
What Medicaid can help qualify you for
Medicaid is a qualifying program for Lifeline, which discounts eligible monthly phone or internet service. After applying through the correct state process, choose a participating company and confirm the price of its plan.
A provider may separately sell or promote devices. Before accepting a tablet offer, ask for the model, condition, full charge, warranty, and whether a service commitment applies. Approval for Lifeline does not itself guarantee a tablet.
Compare device-assistance options
For a computer or tablet, check PCs for People and Human-I-T. These nonprofits publish their own eligibility and pricing rules. Low-cost devices are not necessarily free; any donated-device offer depends on funding and stock.
A school or library may lend equipment; a local nonprofit may run a limited donation program. Ask whether the device is a loan or gift, how long you may use it, and whether the program is currently accepting requests.
Documents and next steps
Use the chosen program’s official application. It may ask for current Medicaid participation or qualifying-income evidence. Share only the documents requested by that program, and do not pay a fee to reactivate ACP.
If the tablet is needed as disability-related assistive technology, ask your healthcare team and Medicaid plan about the specific prescribed device and coverage requirements. That is a separate clinical coverage question, not a general free-tablet promotion.