You’re ready to embark on the chance of a lifetime to further your studies overseas. Your visa is in order, your bags are packed, you’ve got your language dictionary. Be aware that health insurance for international students is another important necessity for traveling abroad! If you are a student going to study in a foreign country or coming to the U.S.A., then you absolutely need international health insurance. International student health insurance is affordable. Most importantly, it can save you thousands of dollars if you need medial care.
Furthermore, if you are an organization that is bringing students into this country to study and travel, you have an obligation, at the very least, to educate them about the pitfalls of the American medical system and its costs. Organizations that require exchange students to get international student health insurance protect not only their organization but their students’ health as well. It’s a win-win for both of you. No one wants a student to go home talking about the exchange experience they had that turned into a nightmare. Read on to learn about one foreign student’s horror story.
An expensive lesson learned
The following letter was written by a foreign student here at a local college. They came on a trip to learn English, but learned a different lesson instead. A life-saving trip to the ER for a ruptured appendix taught her about how expensive the medical system can be here in the USA.
“This is a story I would like to tell to international students at our college with the hope that it would not happen to any of you. I have been an international student at our college for over 3 years. During the first two and a half years, I bought health insurance and got full coverage, but nothing happened to me. I stayed really healthy active and worry free. It cause me to stop buying health insurance last semester. At that time, something happened.
I had to go to the Emergency room and had surgery to remove my appendix. I was hospitalized for 2 days and 1 night. A couple months later, I got several medical bills from the hospital which charged me a total of 35,000 USD. I was really SHOCKED. Now I have been dealing with the hospital to reduce my bills, but I still don’t know the results yet….
The bottom line I want to tell you guys is DON’T IGNORE BUYING HEALTH INSURANCE IT’S GONNA COST YOU A LOT OF MONEY IF YOU GET CAUGHT BEING SICK OR GOING TO THE EMERGENCY ROOM. I just don’t want any of you to experience this situation that I’ve been through. Thank you, LT.”
Get International Student Health Insurance Before You Get Sick
If you do not yet have medical insurance that covers you in the USA, you may choose from many plans. There are several plans specially designed for students which have great coverage for the type of things that happen to young people. Every semester students get caught without insurance. They have accidents and illnesses which often cost thousands, or even tens of thousands of dollars. And the most important detail is, you must purchase insurance BEFORE you get sick.
For organizations that bring foreign students to the U.S., we can create a rolling group plan that will allow you to add new students each semester when they arrive. This makes if fast and easy to enroll, and you can absorb the costs into your organization, tack them on as a fee, or bill students separately. Many schools and organizations provide links to plans and a broker and then require the students to show proof of purchase in order to enroll. There are many creative options that will allow us to insure your exchange group or school.
If this young lady had purchased insurance this semester, what would it have cost?
She would have paid only $70.00-180.00 per month if she had chosen one of the best plans available.
Let us help you find a policy that fits your needs. Click here to check out the health insurance plans available for international students.
And in case you’re still looking for a top place to study abroad, here is a recent list of best schools with study abroad programs from U.S. News & World Report.