Student Medical Insurance Mandate
Health insurance is vital to ensuring access to care and predictable health care costs, as well as aiding students in the achievement of their personal and academic goals. That is why CMU requires students to have medical insurance that meets university requirements each academic year, either through enrolling in the CMU Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP) or obtaining a SHIP waiver.
- All full-time students who are physically located in the U.S. must have medical insurance that meets university requirements; certain programs also require this of their part-time students.
- If your insurance meets university requirements, you may apply to waive the CMU SHIP.
- If you do not have insurance that meets university requirements, you must enroll in the medical SHIP. CMU also offers optional vision and dental insurance plans during a student's Open Enrollment period.
- By default, a SHIP placeholder charge is posted to your student account, until you complete Open Enrollment.
- If you do not complete the requirement to enroll in or waive the CMU SHIP during your open enrollment period, you will be auto-enrolled in the medical SHIP after Open Enrollment ends.
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All students who intend to enroll in the SHIP should complete the steps in SIO to enroll during Open Enrollment.
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Open Enrollment
Open Enrollment is the period during which students must enroll in the CMU medical SHIP or obtain an approved waiver. SHIP enrollments and waivers do not carry over from the previous coverage period, students are required to complete a SHIP enrollment or waiver application in the insurance portal in Student Information Online (SIO), during their Open Enrollment period, each academic year. Students who do not complete an enrollment, or receive an approved waiver, during their Open Enrollment period are auto-enrolled in the medical SHIP.
- Open enrollment periods correspond with a student's first active semester at CMU each academic year.
- Review rates and coverage periods
- By default, a placeholder charge for the CMU SHIP is posted to each student's account. During open enrollment this placeholder charge, and payment of this fee, does not indicate a SHIP enrollment. Students must submit their enrollment through SIO.
- Students who apply for and receive an approved waiver will have the placeholder charge credited back to their account.
- Students who enroll in the SHIP will have the placeholder charge credited back to their account and will have the insurance premium fees posted to their account, for the insurance plans they enroll in (medical, dental, and/or vision).
- Students who do not enroll in or waive the SHIP during Open Enrollment will be auto-enrolled in the individual medical SHIP, and the insurance fee will remain on their account.
- Optional dental and vision plans are available during a student’s open enrollment period.
Auto-Enrollment
Students who do not take any action to enroll in, or waive, the CMU SHIP during their Open Enrollment period will be auto-enrolled into the CMU SHIP medical plan.
We strongly recommend that students do not wait to be auto-enrolled:
- Starting in Fall 2025, auto-enrollments will be assessed a $50 processing fee.
- Auto-enrollments are processed 6-8 weeks after Open Enrollment ends, which delays access to your insurance and prescription coverage:
- If you need health care before your enrollment is processed you will likely have to pay for the services, or medication, and submit a claim to the SHIP for reimbursement.
- SHIP dental and vision plans are no longer available. Students can only enroll in these optional plans during their Open Enrollment period.
- Auto-enrollments are processed using the latest U.S. address or campus SMC mailbox listed in SIO. If your insurance card is sent to an outdated address, you will need to request an address change and order a new card.