Mandatory Health Insurance

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International Students

Issues of importance to International Students

• I am an international student and I have always been required to have health insurance at Emory.  However, I never heard about this ‘United States-domiciled’ insurance company requirement.  Is this new?  Can’t I have insurance from my home country?
  
  
• Are there any additional insurance requirements for International Students that do not apply to domestic students?
  
  

I am an international student and I have always been required to have health insurance at Emory.  However, I never heard about this ‘United States-domiciled’ insurance company requirement.  Is this new?  Can’t I have insurance from my home country?
All international students at Emory have been required to have health insurance or to purchase the Emory student plan.  However, the requirement that the insurance company be domiciled in the United States is a Fall 2005 change in the insurance requirement for international students.  Emory has found that receiving health insurance benefits from international carriers for medical care in the United States can often be incomplete and problematic.

Under certain circumstances, we will allow students to have insurance with an international carrier if the insurance company has a claims-processing agreement with an American firm. Please contact our Student Health Services Insurance Office if you have questions about this situation.

Are there any additional insurance requirements for International Students that do not apply to domestic students?
Yes.  In addition to the coverage requirements listed for all students, International Students must have insurance that meets the following additional requirements:

• Coverage for medical evacuation and repatriation of remains to the Insured Person’s place of residence in his or her home country ($10,000 for evacuation, $7,500 for repatriation)

For J-1 exchange visitors and their J-2 dependents, the U.S. Department of State regulations require that the health insurance plan must also meet one or more of the following criteria:

• Part of a group benefits program offered to enrolled students by a designated sponsor, or
• A health maintenance organization (HMO) that is federally qualified as determined by the Health Care Financing Administration (HFCA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human services, or
• A Competitive Medical Plan (CMP) as determined by the Health Care Financing Administration (HFCA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human services, or
• Underwritten by an insurance company having an AM Best rating of “A-“ or above, an Insurance Solvency International, LTD. (ISI) rating of “A-“ or above, a Standard and Poor’s Claims-Paying Ability rating of “A-“ or above, or a Weiss research, Inc. rating of “B+” or above.

The Emory University Student Health Insurance Plan, offered by Chickering/Aetna, meets all additional insurance requirements for international students and dependants.