Attending University Without Suitable Health Insurance Cover Could Result In Disaster

For the majority of college students the last thing they think about is health insurance as is revealed by some recent figures that show that approximately one out of three college students have no form of health insurance. Going to college is a costly undertaking and simply finding the money you need and getting your college loans is hard enough, but you must also consider including suitable low cost health insurance along with everything else that you will need to have.

You should of course begin by looking at your parents' health plan if this applies as it is quite possible that it will include cover for you during your time at college. However, you do need to read the plan details carefully as some plans will provide cover for while you are enrolled in university and other plans will not. Two things to look for in particular are conditions concerning location and age.

Many health insurance plans will provide cover for children up to the age of either 18 or 21 while you are at home and a few plans will also extend this age limit as long as you stay in full-time education. However, many plans are limited to cover within a specified geographic area and so, although you may meet the age requirements of the plan, you may find that you will not be covered when you are studying away from home.

Should you parent's plan will not give you the health cover you need then you will have to arrange your own student health insurance and will need to look for appropriate providers. Fortunately, this is not too difficult and there are several insurance companies which provide plans which are specifically designed for students. So, where should you start looking?

The first place that you ought to look is your own university as colleges will normally make arrangements for their own students to receive cover at a discounted rate. This does not necessarily mean that this will be the best plan for your particular needs and you will need to study the details of the plan to ensure that it meets your needs. Nonetheless your own university is an excellent place to start your search and will usually provide you with the best deal. One other thing to consider when looking at your own college is just what type of medical facilities they provide on campus. A lot of the bigger universities will provide first class medical facilities which are staffed 24 hours a day, while a lot of the smaller universities have far more limited facilities.

Away from the college itself you can also look to the many health insurers and several publicly funded organizations for cover. Additionally, do not overlook the fact that there are several different types of plan which are aimed at different student groups. For instance, short-term health cover may suit many graduate students and can normally be extended after graduation to cover the period until you obtain employment and are eligible for an employer's plan. Additionally, there are supplemental plans which will cover you for things such as pre-existing medical conditions that are usually excluded from normal student cover.

Health insurance today is a complex area and you will have to shop around in order to to get a student health insurance plan that both meets your needs and also fits your budget. This is however one thing which you should certainly not overlook because attending university is an expensive enough business in the first place and you do not want to risk your future or your money because you are unable to meet the cost of illness or injury.