Health Insurance for Graduate Students
The University requires that all full-time graduate students (enrolled in 9 credit hours or more), all Graduate Assistants, and
all international students either purchase the University’s health insurance plan or provide evidence of coverage on another
comparable health insurance plan.  The premiums for 2008-09 are:-09 University sponsored plan?

Insured	Annual	Fall Only	Spring & Summer
Students	$990.00	$402.00	$588.00
Spouses	$1411.00	$584.00	$847.00
Child	$1178.00	$490.00	$708.00

Plan changes for 2008-09
The Health Insurance Contract was recently renegotiated for the South Carolina Consortium of Universities.
The new plan includes these additional benefits:

·         Dental - benefit increased from one to two cleanings per year

·         Pharmacy - benefit increased from $750 to $1,000 per year and additional approved drugs

·         Wellness - a $300 wellness benefit is now included.

USC Premium Contribution for Graduate Assistants
The University will provide a contribution toward the premium for all graduate assistants to help offset the cost of the
USC mandated policy through Pearce & Pearce, Inc.

The University subsidy will be $225 for the 2008-2009 academic year, which is $100 for Fall Semester 2008
and $125 for Spring/Summer Semester. As a result of the University subsidy, eligible students will pay only the
reduced portion of the semester premium.  This subsidy will be automatically applied to the Health Insurance Fee
shown in VIP bill statement.  That is, for fall semester, GA’s should see a “Health Insurance Hard Waive – Fall … $302”
rather than $402. 

Note that all students are also charged a health fee (see schedule of fees for amount) for access to Thompson Health Center. 
This fee can not be waived and is not covered by the GA health insurance subsidy. .

VIP
The VIP system will allow students to select the optional charge for the health insurance for Fall
Only coverage or Spring/Summer Only coverage.  If students wish to enroll during the Fall semester for the annual coverage,
they may enroll at www.studentinsurance.com or by calling Pearce & Pearce at 1-888-622-6001 during Open Enrollment.

Why do USC students need health insurance, when they can be seen at Student Health Services by paying the health fee?
Physician and nurse practitioner visits to Student Health Services are free, however there are additional fees associated with
lab work, x-rays, physical therapy and pharmacy that are not covered by the student health fee. While USC Student Health Services provides
excellent out-patient care for enrolled USC students, SHS provides only out-patient primary care, short-term (but not long-term) counseling and psychiatry services. If and when USC students need specialist care, emergency services or hospitalization, the student health fee does not cover these services. For additional information including waiver of the University’s health insurance plan for those with alternate coverage, follow this
link to the Thomson Health Center webpage on Health Insurance.

What charges will I see on my bill?

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