Do you have a child that is about to graduate from college or university this spring. If so, your concerns might very well involve how to obtain health insurance coverage for your child. As with most health insurance plans, once your child leaves the higher education and strikes out on their own, family health insurance premiums drop the student from their rosters. This creates all kinds of problems for the graduate, as well as the parents, and many feel they have been left out of the loop when it comes to guaranteed health insurance protection.
One solution to this problem is to seek insurance for the graduating student before the health insurance coverage runs outs. This can be managed using various methods these days and should not create a hardship for the student or his family. With the assistance of the internet, most students can apply online for coverage, but in most cases this needs to be done at least 31 days prior to the graduation and expiration of the student’s previous college or family coverage.
Most of the application forms online are brief and require little time to complete with rejection or acceptance occurring within 72 hours. In order to be disqualified the student must have one of the following conditions: ulcers, diabetes, gall bladder, heart, cancer, aids, or suffer from substance abuse – drugs or alcohol.
If you do not get an approval before the 31 days expiration, invest in a short-term health insurance policy (outside of New York )to get the student by while waiting approval on the long-term policy. These short-term health insurance policies are usually good up to one year, and can generally be extended, if necessary, although it is more expensive.
Another thing to keep in mind when buying insurance for your graduating student is the policy deductible. These can range from as high as $2,500 to as low as $250, although some short-term policies carry a $5,000 deductible.
Also, note that children with any of the health problems listed above might be wise to seek the assistance of COBRA, which will allow your graduating student to stay on the family health insurance plan for approximately three additional years.
If you are approaching this year’s deadline, you might be wise to check with a good health insurance provider to see if your state is now providing extended health insurance coverage to graduating students. I understand there are many offering it and more to be added this year.