<p>I know must of us on this board are newly admitted students, but I was just curious if any of you are familiar with the health insurance program provided by UCLA called USHIP? I will no longer be under my parents insurance as of this summer and I was looking into obtaining some sort of health insurance. I was originally going to go with a private insurance provider and waive the USHIP fees, but I noticed it would be a lot cheaper to obtain this insurance instead. Does anyone know someone with any good/bad experiences? Thanks! :)</p>
<p>You are much better off getting their insurance since it is much more expensive trying to find one and buy one on your own. And may I ask why you will not be under your parent's insurance. I know I am still under my parent's insurance as long as I'm a full time student at my college.</p>
<p>what was the cost per semester?</p>
<p>I worked for an insurance company for 3 years so i will note some good/bad points about USHIP.</p>
<p>One thing is USHIP changed this year from blue cross to united (i think, or the other way around)</p>
<p>If you go to student health .ucla. edu you can see the exact plan summary- copays, coverage, etc.</p>
<p>For the amount of money you pay- which is about 700 a year it is REALLY GOOD for the coverage you get.</p>
<p>The negatives are that it is organized sort of like an HMO- you have to go to the ASHE center first, and from there they refer you IF they feel you need something they can not provide. You will mostly get referred to UCLA medical - one of the top hospitals in the country so you are really only gaining from that aspect of it.</p>
<p>If you are going to live on campus or very near to campus it is really not an issue to go to the Ashe center for your initial consult. You can make appointments online even and usually get an appointment within a week. They also have mental health services on campus and the drug coverage was pretty descent from the previous carrier- i doubt that it would significantly increase even though all insurance premiums/policies have been increasing over the years. When you get drugs from inside the Ashe center is cheaper than going elsewhere, but i think that is the whole point - they want everything to go through the Ashe center first.
For most students this form of coverage is not a problem. Usually it is mainly adults and those with doctor preferences and people who have specific problems that prefer to be in charge of their own coverage ... for most students that do not have any serious problems it is not problematic to get your care through the ASHE center first.</p>
<p>My own personal experience is that they will refer you out without a problem to any specialist if there is medical necessity.</p>
<p>Some things are pricey- like the copays for MRIs where 100$- but relative to the ACTUAL cost of an MRI you are still getting a good deal. </p>
<p>Actually relative to the yearly cost and the coverage they provide you are pretty much getting a good deal no matter how you look at it because you can end up easily paying 300 / month for coverage from Kaiser which is one of the affordable plans in california and the service you would get is a thousand times worse not to mention you will not have access to ucla medical center in that case. </p>
<p>OK i am ranting but my end comment is get their coverage and do not hesitate. </p>
<p>AwakenZero- most insurance companies cover full time students up until age 23- but they do not have to do that and if KitKat is older than 23 a lot of them will not cover.</p>
<p>here is a link to the plan info Welcome</a> to UCLA Student Health Services</p>
<p>I'm assuming KitKat is an undergraduate and I'm assuming Kitkat is under 23. I have alot of friends who are still under their parent's insurance plans (under 23 of course). Cause they complain when they need some extra units to make it as a "full time" student to keep their coverage.</p>
<p>Thanks malishka for the info, I really appreciate it. :) </p>
<p>Yeah, I am actually going to be turning 23 this summer, therefore I am not eligible to be on my parent's insurance plan anymore. </p>
<p>I think I will most likely end up getting the USHIP Plus package because my main concern was having coverage for 1) an emergency and 2) dental. I was reading that the dental plan was through MetLife and I when I looked on their website I saw that there was a list of approved dentists I could go to. So deos that mean I can go to anyone I want or would I still have to refer to the Ashe center first for dental as well?</p>
<p>I am actually going to be commuting to campus, but I only live about 15 miles away. Plus, I will be on campus nearly everyday for classes so I'm not too concerned with driving there when I get sick. Either way, it is much much cheaper than obtaining insurance elsewhere. The monthly payments and deductibles other companies expect you to pay are CRAZY!</p>
<p>You can be on your parents insurance as a full time student even after you are 23...depends on the insurance. With Aetna, you can be after 23.</p>
<p>M1l17- not true </p>
<p>I worked for Aetna. .. it depends on what plan you have with aetna, just like all other insurances actually. If the insurance is from the employer of the parent than it is the employer that decides how the plan is written not the insurance company... so in reality an employer can choose to not provide coverage for full time students even if the kid is well under 23. </p>
<p>KitKat, i did not have Dental so i am not sure but i HIGHLY doubt you would go to Ashe as they do not have dentists there. The plan is seperate probably and just goes through metlife without having Ashe be the first line of care.
In either case it is still really cheap coverage relative to what other options you are looking at .</p>
<p>Does anyone know USHIP's policy on preexisting conditions? I looked through all of the pages on the student health website and couldn't find it.</p>
<p>Purpleube - i am 99% certain that pre-exist would not apply per HIPPA guidelines in this case as you are not getting an individual policy but a group plan. </p>
<p>Unless UCLA specifically said XYZ is not covered the list of pre-existing doesnt apply to group plans, and there are few things they could specifically exclude as a group policy provider.</p>
<p>You can contact Ashe center- they have an insurance department, they would be able to tell you with all certainty or contact the underwriter directly- united healthcare.</p>
<p>Thanks. I'll call them soon to make sure, but if you're right then it's a big relief for me. I have been without insurance for years because I'm not eligible for individual policies.</p>
<p>Thanks malishka. You are like the official counselor of this board. lol :)</p>
<p>I am 99% sure I am going to go with this plan. After receiving quotes from many other insurance companies, this is the only one that gives you good coverage for reasonable rates. At least I will likely get to keep my regular dentist.</p>