Health Insurance chaos

[selin]

Hey,

so, I will start this Ph.d program on September, but the thing is that the university does not offer a health coverage, though paying a not-so-bad fellowship. I am an international student, so it is not an option for me to "stay on my parents' plan". Is there any idea what should I do? Can the graduate student be considered as 'students' for example-so that I can get a student plan?Finding a job is already out of the picture.

Edited March 13, 2011 by finallythere!

[Eigen]

Just get a regular health insurance plan?

I know at least half of the grad students in our department have our own policies. It was far cheaper than the student plans for me, I know.

Talk to current graduate students, and see what insurance companies offer good plans in that state.

Edited March 12, 2011 by Eigen

[Nurse Wretched]

Most schools offer a student insurance plan -- pretty bare bones -- and you can use the student health center for a nominal fee or free in many schools. The 26-year-old limit is brand new this year, so American schools are well acquainted with uninsured students and their need for coverage.

[Eigen]

Most schools offer a student insurance plan -- pretty bare bones -- and you can use the student health center for a nominal fee or free in many schools. The 26-year-old limit is brand new this year, so American schools are well acquainted with uninsured students and their need for coverage.

Be careful assuming that the student health plan is bare-bones. The one our school has is quite a bit more expensive than plans that you can get from other insurance companies.

Edited March 13, 2011 by Eigen

[robot_hamster]

At my school, everyone pays a student fee that is meant to cover the costs of using the facilities on campus and this includes the health center. As long as you have paid the fee (and just about everyone does because it appears on the tuition bill), you can go to the health center. Seeing the doctor is free and tests/lab work/prescriptions are all at a nominal fee. So really, the only thing to worry about is a major illness or serious injury. There is a such thing as just accident/serious illness insurance though and a lot of students get that. There is also an option to buy the "health plan" that is offered through the university, but it really isn't worth it if you actually have to pay for it. Since I'm a grad student that is on the payroll though, I get it for free as part of my package. Anyway, you might want to see what your school has in the way of a health center because you may just want to buy accident insurance.

Edited March 13, 2011 by robot_hamster

[Nurse Wretched]

Be careful assuming that the student health plan is bare-bones. The one our school has is quite a bit more expensive than plans that you can get from other insurance companies.

Oh, I didn't say it was cheap. The coverage is generally quite limited. There's a big difference.

[selin]

there is no plan at all offered by the school. They are paying an extra amount of stipend to find and pay for a plan that I find, not even a very basic one,

[StrangeLight]

so just ask other grad students what they use and buy that.

or consider getting international traveler's health insurance. it's sort of "cheating" but it's much cheaper.

or just save all your doctors' visits for when you visit your home country and pray you don't get really sick in the meantime. that's what i do. i just can't rationalize paying $250/month for insurance and THEN having to give copayments any time i actually want to go to the doctor or get a prescription. what the hell is the $250/month for if i still need to pay whenever i actually go to the doctor?

i'll be honest, the american health care system scares the shit out of me. i avoid it entirely and just get all my doctoring done when i visit family once a year. there HAVE been times where, if i had been in my home country, i would've gone to my doctor, but i just try to ignore the chronic this and 6-month-long bout of that...

[Eigen]

so just ask other grad students what they use and buy that.

or consider getting international traveler's health insurance. it's sort of "cheating" but it's much cheaper.

or just save all your doctors' visits for when you visit your home country and pray you don't get really sick in the meantime. that's what i do. i just can't rationalize paying $250/month for insurance and THEN having to give copayments any time i actually want to go to the doctor or get a prescription. what the hell is the $250/month for if i still need to pay whenever i actually go to the doctor?

i'll be honest, the american health care system scares the shit out of me. i avoid it entirely and just get all my doctoring done when i visit family once a year. there HAVE been times where, if i had been in my home country, i would've gone to my doctor, but i just try to ignore the chronic this and 6-month-long bout of that...

If you're paying $250 per month for a plan, you're probably paying way too much. Unless you're older (premiums increase with age) or have some pre-existing conditions that put you into a higher risk-bracket.

I pay about $150 per month, and could drop it from there- and I have what I consider decent coverage. You need to look for actual insurance, not a health plan- health plans are expensive, and unless you have frequent medical bills quite unnecessary. A "Major Medical" plan with around a 2k-3k deductible is probably what you should look for- most will pay for a check up per year, but other than that you cover your routine expenses. What insurance is there to cover are the extreme medical expenses- you get in a car accident, you need surgery (appendectomy, etc)- most of which will cost in the 10s of thousands of dollars- an amount that you really won't be able to come up with out of pocket. Insurance is a monthly expense, yes, but what it *should* mean is that you have a cap on the amount that you will ever have to pay for healthcare over the course of a year.

Just some thoughts.

It's not like routine visits are usually all that expensive here- it's often worth it to go out to a nearby rural area, but I can't remember the last time I've payed more than $100 for a visit and necessary tests... Unless I need x-rays, EKGs or something exceptionally large.

Edited March 13, 2011 by Eigen