Posted on Monday, August 5th, 2013 at 8:00 am

“So if it wasn’t confusing enough that I’m moving to an entirely different country to study, learn a new culture and make a new set of friends all over again – I have to figure out their insurance/ health system too?”

Ok, so this may not be exactly what international students in the US are thinking, but often times, students are confused about the purpose of health insurance and how it works in the US compared to other countries around the world.

Sure, as an international student you can ask your American friends to help you out, but that can cause even more confusion. For example, your American friends may be covered under their parent’s insurance policy and those are very different when compared to international student insurance plans. Benefits are different, access to care may be different, regulations on those plans are different – you get the picture!

To help you through this process, and crush those student insurance myths – here are two of the most common myths that international students (and sometimes even Americans) have about student insurance.

#1 – “I can just buy insurance when I need it, worst case I might just have to pay a little bit more”

FALSE! If you get sick or injured today and you want to buy an insurance policy so that you can use right away for that injury/ illness – it will not work! The plan will not cover you. Think about it, would you be able to buy home insurance to cover your home against it burning down, after it has already burnt down? With all insurance, it is meant to protect you against something that may happen in the future, not what has already happened.

#2 – “A good insurance plan will cover me for everything”

FALSE AGAIN! Not many health insurance plans cover you for “everything”. A good student insurance plan will cover you for your medical costs if you get sick or injured. However, all insurance plans includes some exclusions or limitations. For example, many insurance plans will not cover you incase your injured while participating in dangerous sports. Some may not cover you if you injure yourself while under the influence of drugs or alcohol. So it’s important to read your insurance policies benefits and exclusion in detail, and perhaps a better question than “does the insurance cover everything?” ask “what are the exclusions on the insurance?”

There are many other myths about student insurance out there. To read more about them, check out our article on Student Insurance Myths and Realities. And if you have any insurance myths to share, post it in the comment section.

Not sure if what you heard is a myth or reality? Ask our insurance agent so they can tell you the fact and bust those myths for you!

Posted by ahoontrakul

Originally from Thailand, Apinant grew up in the United States and has extensive international experience traveling throughout Asia, Australia, North America and Europe. He has lived, studied and worked abroad in China, England, Taiwan and Thailand. Apinant is a graduate of the University of Florida with a Masters in International Business and a Bachelors of Science in Business Management.