Healthcare

Deadline to waive or upgrade BU Student Health insurance is SEPTEMBER 30, 2009.

For many questions about health related issues at BU you can visit the website of Student Health Services . For healthcare, you can also visit Student Health Services in person, though it is best to call ahead and schedule an appointment if possible.

BU Student Health Insurance

• Who Gets Signed Up

  As mentioned in the Student Health Services website Massachusetts law requires that all full-time students and students who participate in at least 75 percent of the full-time curriculum must have medical insurance. Boston University has made arrangements with Aetna to provide two options for student health insurance (BASIC and PLUS). Many students (as described by a Student Accounting Services page) are AUTOMATICALLY enrolled in the Student BASIC plan. If a student is automatically enrolled then they can waive the coverage by providing proof that they otherwise satisfy the law’s requirement of being covered by health insurance, and the charge for the BASIC plan will be removed from their student account. Further details on waiving the health insurance are also available on the Student Accounting Services page. Students who would like to enroll in the PLUS plan must specify their desire to do so using the Student Link, and their account will be charged accordingly.

• Who Gets it Paid For and How Much

  Teaching Fellows and Research Assistants that do not waive the insurance coverage AND get paid $5000 or more per semester (as described on another Student Accounting Services page) receive credit towards their account in the amount of half of the year’s cost of the BASIC plan once in the fall semester and once in the spring semester. This is provided that they get paid $5000 or more in both semesters. Students eligible for insurance credit choosing to enroll in the PLUS plan rather than the BASIC plan will still receive credit for the BASIC plan’s cost and will need to supply the difference in price ($550) themselves.

• Waiving coverage or upgrading coverage is done through the Student Link. (Under the “Money Matters” tab, click on “Medical Insurance.”)

But wait! You want to know how good the coverage is, don’t you? Perhaps if you want to know what the difference is between the BASIC and PLUS coverage? And what other benefits can you squeeze out of the AETNA coverage? Are there other options you should consider? Finally, what do you do concerning your oral health care? Ladies and gentlemen, SCROLL DOWN.

BU Student Health Insurance Coverage Descriptions

• Long, detailed version (from the AETNA web page). This document (if you can decipher it) should give you a good idea of what is covered, what isn’t covered, and the differences in coverage between the BASIC and PLUS plans. If you have questions after reading this, check out the short and medium length coverage descriptions or contact Student Health Services and ask to speak with an expert on the BU insurance.
• Short version (distributed by SHS). This gives a good side-by-side one-page comparision between the BASIC plan and the PLUS plan. The second page (which is for last year’s coverage) is included only for the information about coverage when services are performed by Student Health Services, which largely has not changed for the 2009-2010 year of coverage. This is a good place to start if you're trying to decide between the BASIC and PLUS plans.
• Medium length version (distributed by SHS). Gives more details than the short version, with more plain-speak than either the long or the short versions.
• Details of how out-of-network providers get paid (previously mailed by Aetna). In-network providers Aetna has some bargaining power with. Out-of-network providers Aetna will pay what they compute as their responsibility of what they determine to be the reasonable charge. If the provider charges more than what the reasonable charge is, the enrollee is responsible for the difference.
• Differences from last year

  The maximum payable amount for ambulatory services (which was $200 last year) has been lifted, and will be paid at 80% (BASIC plan) or 100% (PLUS plan). The number of office visits per condition has been increased from 30 to 36. Policy year maximum has increased from $250,000 to $500,000. Brand-name prescription drugs now have a co-pay of $30 instead of $25. Premiums for the plans have increased, ($1466 to $1517 for the BASIC plan annual coverage cost) as well as the cost to upgrade to the PLUS plan ($531 last year to $550 this year).

Additional web resources

• Aetna Student Health page

  Along with the plan description brochure that we have re-hosted and linked to above ("Long version" of student health insurance coverage description), they offer information about how to use your health insurance plan, information relating to prescriptions (which pharmacies near you are in-network and how to get reimbursed if the pharmacy charges you more than your coverage indicates they should), information about coverage provided while you are traveling, and a tool for finding in-network doctors, hospitals, or pharmacies. They also provide information about understanding “explanation of benefits” forms, which you receive after the insurance is billed for health care. This site, in bright, friendly colors, is most easily navigated using their menu on the left hand side of the page. If following the above link results in a page that says your session has expired, typing in "Boston University" to their school directory should get you back to the right page.

• Aetna Navigator

  If you are enrolled in an Aetna-provided health insurance, you can create an account with Aetna Navigator. This page gives you access to your claim and benefits history, an option to turn on paperless communication, a page to request a medical ID card replacement, capability to update your profile with them, and a tool to estimate the costs of care. As a bonus, you get access to a few “health programs”, which are described on pages 39 and 40 of the long description of student health insurance benefits pdf.

Other Medical Insurance Options and BU Student Dental Plan

• Commonwealth Connector

  From the page: The Health Connector is an independent state agency that helps Massachusetts residents find health care coverage.

• Alumni Associations of which you are a Member

  Some alumni associations provide various types of insurance options, including medical insurance. Check with your alma mater(s).

• BU Student Dental Plan

  The BU school of Dental Medicine offers a student dental plan for certain dental procedures/services. These procedures and services are either free-with-purchase of the plan or at a greatly reduced price from what they would cost if they were done by a dentist. They are performed by BU dental students in their later years of dental school and checked on by their instructors before treatments are given and between steps.