Medical Insurance
Penn State requires medical insurance for international graduate assistants and full-time fellows and any accompanying dependents (spouse and/or children).
As a graduate assistant/graduate fellow, you are eligible to receive a subsidy in the amount of 80% of the annual premium cost for the Penn State University Graduate Assistants and Graduate Fellows Health Insurance Plan. In 2004-05, graduate assistants and graduate fellows will pay $242.60 of the total annual premium cost of $1,213 for medical insurance. When dependents are also insured, the graduate assistant will pay $1,861.10 of the total premium of $6,608.
Note: While not recommended, graduate assistants and fellows who are not international students may chose to not have health insurance and may decline this benefit by completing the appropriate form at the Student Insurance Office.
Penn State continues to subsidize graduate assistants’ and graduate fellows’ eligible dependents (spouse and/or children) at 70% of the annual premium expense. The graduate assistant/graduate fellow will be responsible for paying the remaining 30% of the annual premium for eligible dependents.
The 2004-05 Penn State Graduate Assistants and Graduate Fellows Health Insurance Plan provides a maximum benefit of $500,000 per covered incident per policy year; coverage for pre-existing conditions; preventive (“well-baby”) examinations; multiple procedures during a single surgery; and prescription benefits (including birth control). Prescriptions filled at the University Health Services Pharmacy, Ritenour Building will be fully covered for the first $200 and thereafter covered at 80% with a maximum of $500,000 per incident. Some other benefits include: maternity, improved inpatient and outpatient psychotherapy, improved physical therapy benefits, medical evacuation and repatriation, alcohol abuse and dependency benefits, increased benefits for ambulance, increased coverage for anesthesia, coverage for appliances, braces and supplies, increased coverage for wisdom tooth extraction, and coverage for assistant surgeons. Not all benefits have been included in the description above. You may review other benefits when you receive your new insurance brochure for 2004/05 from your academic departments in mid-August or online at http://www.sa.psu.edu/uhs/basics/insurance.cfm.
Preferred providers are: Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Centre Community Hospital and Devon Health Service Network (hospitals and physicians). The Devon Health Network can also be utilized in New Jersey, New York, Delaware, Ohio and Vermont.
Also offered to graduate assistants and graduate fellows and their eligible dependents is the Opti-Vision Discount Program. The Opti-Vision Program is available through National Vision Administrators and provides savings on eye examinations, lenses, frames and contact lenses through the use of a participating provider network. Additional information about this plan or the health insurance plan may be obtained from the Student Insurance Office, 320 Grange Building University Park, (814) 865-7467. Beginning in 2005-06, eligible graduate assistants will be offered a new vision plan with Penn State paying 80% of the premium for the graduate assistant and 70% of the premium for spouse and children.