Did you know that around $2,649 is billed to your tuition? MMC Students only realize that a health insurance plan is automatically added to their tuition costs unless they opt-out. If you choose to opt out of MMC health insurance, you must provide the school with information regarding adequate health insurance to cover you in NYC (parents, employees, etc. plans). Marymount requires all students enrolled in 12 or more credits to have comprehensive health insurance to assist in any illness or injury while a full-time student in NYC. MMC Counseling Center director Dr. Debbie Giordano suggested, “Most colleges have a health insurance requirement. This is because if a student is uninsured and experiences an unexpected illness or injury, this could cause a significant financial setback (i.e. medical debt) and jeopardize the student’s ability to remain in school. We also want to make sure that students do not forgo care-whether medical or mental health- simply because they do not have insurance that covers them in NYC. We want students to be able to seek treatment when they need it!” 

According to the MMC Counseling Center, “The vast majority of MMC students choose to opt out of the student health insurance plan.” The process of opting out of student health insurance through University Health Plans (UHP), which manages the waiver process that verifies the information about your pre-existing insurance. UHP also manages students’ health insurance enrollment process and connects them with insurance provider UnitedHealthcare. Out-of-state students often enroll in MMC health insurance if they are under a parent’s health insurance plan; most of the time, it will not cover NYC. All international students are also automatically enrolled in this insurance plan at registration, and the premium for coverage is added to their tuition bill.

Let’s shift our focus to the intricacies of the UnitedHealthcare Student resources plan provided by MMC:

What is not included:

• ​​Cosmetic services
• Dental services except for emergency accidental injury
• Eye examination or fitting of eyeglasses or contact lenses
• Any routine foot care 
• Care or treatment provided in a Hospital that is owned or operated by any federal, state or other governmental entity, except as otherwise required by law
• Health care service, procedure, treatment, test, device or Prescription Drug that We determine is not Medically Necessary
• An illness, treatment or medical condition due to service in the Armed Forces or auxiliary units.
• Services performed by a covered person’s immediate family member
• Services if benefits for such services are provided under any state or federal Workers’ Compensation, employers’ liability or occupational disease law

In terms of health insurance, many assume that medical visits are free or at a significantly discounted rate; many students are uneducated on Copays, which are a fixed amount of money that a person is required to pay for a specific medical service or prescription medication covered by their health insurance plan. An anonymous student informed me that they visited an Upper East Side CityMD for severe allergy symptoms that OTC (over the counter) medicine isn’t improving, and their copay was $60 to be seen and around $20 to get their prescription filled, overall this visit cost them about $80 total. The appointment lasted about 20 minutes, with no test or anything, just a doctor taking note of symptoms and writing a prescription. For a Full-time college student, $80 could be a lot, alongside finding time in a busy schedule to go to urgent care. 

This is a glimpse of the realities of a student and health insurance plan. I recommend all students read through the fine print of Health Insurance plans to ensure they understand the services not provided and the possible copays they will be charged before any services. Understanding health insurance for students is essential in transitioning into our professional careers, and the knowledge of discussing healthcare with a future employer could be crucial. If you have further questions about our healthcare plan, I recommend contacting the MMC counseling center.