Questions re: SHIP & Health Insurance Waiver

<p>As I understand it, we are automatically enrolled in SHIP unless we fill out an insurance waiver stating that we have adequate health insurance. Our son has been going to the same doctor since he was born and thankfully usually sees him only once a year for check-up etc.. In order to waive SHIP, it states that the primary physician we use must be less than 100 miles away from UCSD. Well we live in L.A. vacinity so obivously we are farther than that, but why should this make any difference?!? We don't want to switch to some random doctor we don't even know just to waive out of SHIP!! Is anyone else going through the same situation and do we just have to bite the bullet and pay for SHIP as well as keep our private insurance?!? I'd rather just pay the extra co-pay if he needs it for health visits at UCSD than pay the whole SHIP</p>

<p>I don't think it makes a difference; your insurance plan should have a network of doctors available for you to visit. In my case, when I had Blue Cross (PPO), every doctor within the state was accessible to me -- so I could check "yes" to that question. I don't remember them asking you to specify a particular doctor; I just answered "any doctor" and explained my reasons for doing so. They never bugged me about it, and I succeeded in waiving my insurance all four years of undergrad.</p>

<p>Anybody else have an opinion on SHIP??</p>

<p>I waived it. It was easy.</p>

<p>i have the same problem, i live in LA and my doctor is like, 130 miles away. i dont want to have to switch now.</p>

<p>Just report on the waiver that your doctor is within 100 miles of the campus, I doubt they will audit you.</p>

<p>Is that what you did Kevinc121? Do they even ask for the name of your physician? Since our son has no medical probs he most likely wont even go to the health services but even if he did i would gladly pay the extra $20.00 copay!</p>

<p>No, they did not ask for my physicians name or location.</p>

<p>In my first year at UCSD, I was actually chosen to be audited. At the time, my physician was in Northern California so I had to choose another physician within 100 miles of UCSD to provide them proof of my insurance. In this case, yes, I had to change my immediate doctor because of the audit. But in other cases, the waiver form just asks the city your physician is in and if he/she is within 100 miles from UCSD. If in the case you aren't selected to be audited, I suppose you could lie about it and hope for the best. In the case your son is chosen to be audited, then you can just pay the co-payment (which you were about to do anyway) and keep the current doctor.</p>

<p>EDIT: By the way, the cost for SHIP is around $250 per quarter (it might've increased from my year), which amounts to about $800 a year if you don't waive the full year.</p>

<p>Does anyone know if we have to fill out the waiver each year, or only as an entering freshman?</p>

<p>(Google!)</p>

<p>Do I have to waive each academic year?</p>

<pre><code>Yes. Approved waivers are effective for the current academic year. If you wish to waive out of SHIP for subsequent academic years, a new waiver application will need to be submitted by the appropriate deadline date each academic year.
</code></pre>

<p>Son just got wiaver approved! I'm assuming that means we won' be audited at this point, am I correct in thinking this?!? Hope so!</p>