Waive Coverage

COMPLETING THE WAIVER

• You must complete the online waiver to have the insurance cancelled and your account credited.  Information (insurance card) submitted to the Health Portal is not shared with the Dean of Students Office for purposes of completing this waiver.
• Waive the coverage if you have existing comparable coverage that is accepted in Albany, NY.
• Remaining in or waiving out of the student health insurance plan is an annual decision, effective for the entire academic year.
  • The student health insurance fee will remain on your e-bill.
  • Once you complete the waiver, a new item will post to your e-bill (Waived Student Health Insurance) with a credit for the amount of the fee typically within 5-7 business days.
  • Those choosing to waive the insurance MUST renew their waiver EACH YEAR  by September 20^th  

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SHOULD I WAIVE THE SIENA STUDENT HEALTH INSURANCE PLAN?

Per Siena College policy, all full-time students must have health insurance coverage.

Siena College sponsors a student health plan through Anthem for those full-time students without existing health insurance coverage and for those students whose plan does not cover routine and non-emergency care in the Albany, NY area surrounding the College.

If you have existing coverage - to be permitted to waive coverage in the Siena College student health insurance plan, your existing plan must meet the following requirements:

• Your plan must cover inpatient and outpatient medical and behavioral (mental/substance use) health care within 50 miles of campus, including routine, urgent and emergency care (emergency only coverage does not meet this requirement.)
• Your plan is provided by an insurance company based in the United States.
• Your plan is currently active and provides coverage throughout the entire academic year. (If your current coverage ends during the current academic year, you must provide updated insurance information or become enrolled in the Siena plan at that time.)
• Your plan provides coverage for prescription drugs.
• Your plan provides coverage for preexisting conditions.
• Your plan offers unlimited coverage per accident or illness.
• Your out of pocket expenses cannot exceed $5,000 per policy year.
• Your annual deductible does not exceed $500 per policy year.

 You will be required to complete the Student Health Insurance Waiver application in your housing portal. The waiver will require you to affirm that by completing the form that you have your own existing active health insurance plan that meets the above listed requirements and that you are waiving coverage in the Siena College provided Health Insurance plan.

NOTE: The College reserves the right to deny waivers if the health insurance information provided is either false, inactive or does not meet the requirements as outlined above.

 What to consider:

If you have a health insurance plan already and are planning to waive the Siena Student health plan, please check to see if your current insurance will cover lab work at St. Peter’s Hospital Laboratory, 315 S. Manning Blvd, Albany, NY 12208.

Siena Health Services can only use St. Peter's Lab for routine lab work (strep, blood, UTI, etc.)  When a student calls Health Services for an appointment, the student will be triaged.  If the student is presenting with an issue that might require lab work but their insurance doesn't cover St. Peter's Lab, the triage nurse will direct them to an off-campus urgent care.

Currently on Medicaid? 

Students currently on Medicaid in Massachusetts, Montana, Minnesota and Pennsylvania should check with their current insurer about the possibility of getting a subsidy from the state to pay for your participation in the Siena student health insurance plan instead of staying on your current Medicaid plan. Some states have found it is less expensive to pay for a student to participate in their college's student health insurance plan than it would be to keep the students on the state plan.

Some students may be covered under an insurance plan that doesn’t permit dual coverage (Healthy New York plans, Medicaid, etc.) If a student is covered under such a plan and does not complete the waiver by the deadline, their current plan may terminate their coverage because the student will be automatically enrolled in the Siena College student health plan with Anthem.