Health Insurance Articles

Special Health Insurance Policies For College Students

2010-01-02

College and university students benefit from health insurance in the same way that any other age demographic would, however, they are in a unique position while attending their institution of choice. In many cases the health care policy currently covering their parents, likely through a parent's employer, may no longer cover the student when they reach a certain age. If coverage does continue, but the student attends an out-of-state school, both the parent's employee benefits and their HMO may consider the health care providers there to be out of the client's service area, leading to higher out-of-pocket costs. In addition, since many university and college students have not yet begun careers of their own, they do not have employers who can provide them with necessary coverage.

For this reason, many insurance providers have developed student health insurance plans to help protect these young scholars both on and off campus. These plans provide lower-cost health insurance options for students, while still retaining the ability to deliver essential health care services. Often these plans are tailor-made for each individual school, depending on their facilities and the services they offer, in conjunction with an insurance provider. This allows the right amount of coverage to be granted to students, but without overly taxing their (or their parents) wallets.

There are several significant differences between a traditional health care plan and one tailored for students. The first such difference is that a student policy will only be in effect for a limited amount of time - for as long as the individual receiving coverage remains a student. This makes student health plans far shorter in length than traditional plans. Second, a health insurance policy for students will often need to be less comprehensive, as many campuses have student health care centers that offer a wide variety of care at a substantial reduction in cost to any student who attends the institution.

What this boils down to is that student health plans are a lower-cost alternative to their traditional counterparts. This is because they are for a limited period of time - meaning a smaller window in which an insurance company would be required to pay out. Additionally, because many students are covered by health programs already in place and largely paid for by their tuition, the range of services offered by student health policies can be much narrower. Both of these factors make student health plans a significantly cheaper alternative, along with the fact that most college students are young and healthy, further reducing the premiums paid.

Whether attending a school close to home or one farther a field, a student-specific health policy can ease any parent's mind and bank account.