Do you have health insurance? Many students at Quinnipiac probably do not know the answer to this important question. Many might assume that they are still covered under their parents’ policy, while others may have already purchased it.

Health insurance is not something most students think about until they need it. They’ll be forced to think about it a little bit more, however, since Quinnipiac recently mandated that all students must have some form of health insurance, either purchased through the school or an outside coverage, by the start of the next school year.

About 90 percent of Quinnipiac students have health insurance, according to John Meriano, who is the director of administrative services. But for the small percentage that does not have it, Quinnipiac is offering to include a low-cost insurance as part of their tuition. The health insurance being offered through Quinnipiac is in partnership with the Chickering Group and costs $990 per year. This covers students at school, home and when studying abroad. This policy covers outpatient care and also covers generic prescriptions with a $15 co-pay and a $30 co-pay for name-brand prescriptions.

Quinnipiac students are also being offered an optional vision and dental plan as well for an extra cost of $25. Even if a student does not opt to pay for the entire health care plan, he or she can take part in the vision and dental plans to supplement a regular health care plan.

So, what are the options for a student who already has insurance? “We made it really easy, all you have to do is go to chickering.com/schools/Quinnipiac and waive out of the policy with four short questions,” Meriano said. By waiving the insurance policy, “you accept responsibility in the event you become sick,” he said.

In addition, a student should waive out as soon as possible to avoid an additional charge of $990 from appearing on his or her tuition bill for the fall 2007 semester, he said.

A student would not be charged if he or she neglected to waive out by the time he or she received the tuition bill in the fall, Meriano said. But it would be simpler for the student to waive out now. And there is an added benefit: if students make their decision by May 1, they will be entered into a raffle to win $500 of QCash for next semester, Meriano told all students in an e-mail message last month.

According to Meriano, “there is a need because some do not have it and don’t realize how important it is to have insurance.” This is why Quinnipiac has partnered with the Chickering Group to provide it for its students.

The easiest way for students to avoid an additional charge on their tuition bill while giving themselves the chance to win extra QCash for next semester is by logging on to WebAdvisor or www.chickering.com/schools/Quinnipiac.