Add Insurance
Voluntary enrollment in the Boston University (BU) Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP) (2024-2025 plan year)
SHIP is Boston University’s health insurance plan for students. It is offered through Aetna, a large national health insurer. The Boston University Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP) is available during open enrollment to most BU students at two plan levels, Student Basic, an ACA Gold level plan, and Student Plus, an ACA Platinum level plan.
Boston University automatically enrolls full-time, three-quarter time, and international undergraduate and graduate students in the Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP).
NOTE: Distance Education students (online only) and part-time non-degree domestic students enrolled below seventy-five percent of full-time are not eligible to enroll in SHIP.
For all other students:
- To compare the Student BASIC and Student PLUS plan features, please visit the Student Health Services website and select “Plan Documents and Other Resources.”
- SHIP is administered by Aetna Student Health. For a detailed description of the plan benefits, provisions, and exclusions, visit the Aetna Student Health
Fall 2024 semester:
The cost for enrollment in the 2024-2025 Annual Plan is $3,401 for Student Basic and $4,567 for Student Plus. The 2024-2025 Plan Year is August 15, 2024, through August 14, 2025.
2024-2025 plan year: Open Enrollment: (begins mid-July 2024 and ends September 20, 2024*)
***The following students have an earlier open enrollment deadline:
- BU School of Medicine: new entering M.D. Candidate: September 5, 2024
BU Goldman School of Dental Medicine:
- new PreDocs (D.M.D.): August 29, 2024
- new entering PostDocs & new Fellowship students: August 1, 2024
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Fall 2024 semester Open Enrollment: Changing Plan level, Reinstating SHIP after waiving, Purchasing SHIP (part-time domestic students), Adding Dependents:
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Changing Plan level (Basic vs Plus) –applicable to to students assessed for BU SHIP during open enrollment,
NOTE: Division of Graduate Medical Sciences (GMS) P.H.D. candidates) are assessed at the Student Plus level, and are not eligible to change plan levels.
Students enrolled in the Basic Plan may change to the Plus Plan inside the MyBU Student Portal. Visit the MyBU portal select the MyBU Dashboard, then Student Health Insurance > Change Plan level > Confirm/Change to the Student Plus Insurance Plan, then confirm that change with the pop-up button...
To change from the Plus level to the Basic level, follow the same instructions, except select Confirm/Change to the Student Basic at the prompt.
(Plan level may only be changed during open enrollment)
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Reinstating Annual SHIP during open enrollment–for students who waived Fall 2024 SHIP**:
**(after open enrollment continue further down to the “After Open Enrollment – Enrollment Guidelines”):
Students who have been assessed $3,401 for the Student Basic plan or $4,567 for the Student Plus Plan on their Fall 2024 bill and who waived enrollment in SHIP for the 2024-2025 Plan Year may re-enroll during the Fall 2024 Open Enrollment period. To rescind your waiver and re-enroll in SHIP, visit the MyBU Student Portal.
- Visit https://www.bu.edu/mybu/ and login to the MyBU Student Portal.
- Select “MyBU Dashboard”
- Select “Student Health Insurance”
- Select “Waive SHIP”
- At Gallagher’s website, login using your BU user name and Kerberos password
- Open your submitted 2024-2025 insurance waiver form
- Select “Rescind Form” and submit.
- Please allow 2-3 business days for the update to reflect on your student account.
Once the insurance charge has been reinstated, to change SHIP plan level (Basic vs Plus), refer to the Changing Plan level instructions above. (Plan level may only be changed during open enrollment)
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Purchasing SHIP during open enrollment (part-time domestic students enrolled below 75% of a full-time course load):
NOTE: Distance Education students (online only) and part-time non-degree domestic students enrolled below seventy-five percent of full-time are not eligible to enroll in SHIP.
BU degree candidates registered for campus based courses, whose student account was not assessed for student health insurance, or students who were assessed for SHIP, but dropped to part-time, below seventy-five percent of full-time (part-time, below nine credit-hours) may purchase Annual SHIP during the Fall 2024 Open Enrollment period.
To purchase SHIP during open enrollment, visit the MyBU portal, select the MyBU Dashboard, select Student Health Insurance > Purchase SHIP > then select either Purchase Student Basic Insurance Plan or select Purchase Student Plus Insurance Plan.
To compare the Student BASIC and Student PLUS plan features, please visit the Student Health Services website and select “Plan Documents and Other Resources.
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Adding Dependents during Open Enrollment: Visit Dependent Enrollment for instructions:
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Adding Dependents after Open Enrollment: Scroll down to After the Open Enrollment Period – Covered Students Wishing to Add Dependents
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After the Open Enrollment Period – Enrollment Guidelines for the 2024-25 plan year
Eligible students not enrolled in SHIP who experience a recent (i.e., within thirty-one days) significant life change event that directly affects the student’s insurance coverage, resulting in loss of comparable coverage, may request to enroll in SHIP after the open enrollment period has ended. Examples of significant life change events include: the plan subscriber (policy holder) losing coverage due to change of employment status, or the student reaching the dependent age restriction on a family plan.
To enroll after the open enrollment deadline, send a written request for insurance coverage along with acceptable proof of your involuntary loss of health insurance within thirty-one days from the date your previous coverage ended. Typical documentation may include: a copy of the Certificate of Credible Coverage issued due to the insurance termination, or confirmation of the insurance termination from the employer on company letterhead. The documentation must include the effective date the coverage ended.
If you are enrolling at the Student PLUS level and wish to include to your eligible dependents on the plan, you must include a dependent enrollment application with your request for coverage. Contact Student Accounting Services for this application. Phone: 617-353-2870. Email: insmed@bu.edu.
Your request for student health insurance coverage and supporting documentation (and dependent enrollment application, where applicable) may be sent by email to insmed@bu.edu, or faxed to 617-353-3313. Requests may also be mailed to Boston University, Student Accounting Services, 25 Buick Street, Suite 130, Boston, MA 02215.
Requests that do not include appropriate supporting documentation will not be considered for review. In your request, please specify if you wish to enroll at the Student BASIC level or Student PLUS level. If your request for enrollment in SHIP is approved, your coverage will become effective from the date that your prior coverage terminated and continue to the end of the insurance policy period. The premium will be prorated on a per diem basis.
For the 2024/25 policy period, the per diem rate is $9.31/day for the BASIC plan, and $12.51 /day for the PLUS plan.
NOTE: All Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine (SDM), Dermatology (MED) students, and Graduate Medical Sciences (GMS) Ph.D level students may only enroll at the Student PLUS level
Enrollment-Enrollment section below will be updated with the 2024-2025 Plan Year per diem rates. The general procedure and rules will be the same for the 2024-2025 Plan Year
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After the Open Enrollment Period – Covered Students Wishing to Add Dependents (2023-2024 plan year)
Students must be enrolled at the PLUS plan level to add eligible dependents. Students enrolled at the BASIC level are NOT eligible to add dependents to their plan, except newborn/newly adopted children*.
Eligible students enrolled in the Student PLUS plan whose dependents experience a recent (i.e., within thirty days) significant life change event may request to add their dependents to the Student PLUS plan for the balance of the plan year. Examples of significant life change events include: adding a newborn child* or adding a spouse who loses coverage due to change in employment status.
To add your eligible dependents after the open enrollment deadline, contact Student Accounting Services to request a dependent enrollment application. Phone: 617-353-2870. Email: insmed@bu.edu. Please return the dependent enrollment application along with supporting documentation of the life change event to insmed@bu.edu. Note: requests to add a newborn do not require supporting documentation. The premium will be calculated on a per diem basis.
For the 2024/25 policy period, the per diem PLUS rate for a spouse is $12.51/day. The per diem PLUS rate to add one child is $12.51 day. The PLUS rate to add two or more children is twice the cost of adding a single child
Final approval is contingent upon the approval of Aetna Student Health.
NOTE: a) For students enrolled at the PLUS level, eligible dependents are the insured student’s lawful spouse that resides with the student and dependent children under 26 years of age. b) For students enrolled at the BASIC level, eligible dependents are newborn, or newly adopted, children born or adopted during the current policy period
* Guidelines for adding a newborn or newly adopted child to your SHIP plan (The following applies to students covered under either the BASIC or PLUS plan):
- A child born to an individual enrolled for coverage in the Plan shall be covered for 31 days after birth. At the end of this 31 day period, coverage will cease under the Plan. To extend coverage for a newborn beyond 31 days, the student must: 1) enroll the child within 31 days of birth, and 2) pay the additional premium, starting from the date of birth. If the student’s coverage ends during this 31 day period after the newborn’s birth, the newborn’s coverage will end on the same day as the student’s coverage ends. This applies even if the 31 day period has not expired.
- Coverage is provided for a child legally placed for adoption with the student from the moment of placement for an initial period of 31 days, provided the child lives in the same household as the student, and is dependent upon the student for support. To extend coverage for the adopted child past the 31 days, the student must: 1) enroll the child within 31 days of placement of such child; and 2) pay any additional premium, if necessary, starting from the date of placement. If the student’s coverage ends during this 31 day period after the adopted child’s placement, the adopted child’s coverage will end on the same day as the student’s coverage ends. This applies even if the 31 day period has not expired.
*For the 2024/25- policy period: For students enrolled at the PLUS level, refer to the rates above (see guidelines above). For students enrolled in the BASIC Plan, the per diem BASIC rate to add one newborn child or one newly adopted child is $9.31/day. The BASIC rate to add a multiple birth/multiple child adoption is twice the cost of adding a single child.