GSS Health – Health and Dental Plan For Students

GSS Health delivers high-quality training in laboratory strengthening, quality assurance, QMS, and HIV and tuberculosis testing. We also offer consulting services on understanding governmental laws, rules and regulations.

Students are automatically enrolled in the GSS Health at the beginning of their term. The Plan provides extended health coverage that goes beyond MSP or equivalent basic plans.

GSS Health

The GSS Health is designed by students for students, to help cover expenses not covered by the BC Medical Services Plan (MSP) or equivalent basic provincial health care coverage. The comprehensive Plan covers prescription drugs, dental care, psychologist visits, travel health coverage, and more.

All UBC registered students are automatically enrolled in the GSS Health when they register for classes (except exchange students paying tuition at their home university). GSS Extended Insurance is front-loaded and charged to your student account at the start of each term.

Each year, the AMS looks at what parts of the Plan are being used most and where more coverage is needed. This year, they decided to increase mental health coverage by $1,500 per year.

AMS Fee Opt-in

All students are automatically enrolled in the GSS Health . However, those that already have health and/or dental coverage (such as a parent’s employee benefit plan or BC MSP) can opt-out by following the procedures on Studentcare’s website during the Change-of-Coverage Period. By opting out, students absolve the AMS/GSS and Studentcare of any liability for any loss suffered.

The AMS fees are used to pay for childcare bursaries, the Student Legal Fund Society, which holds legal workshops and subsidies and litigates on students’ behalf, and CiTR, the campus radio station. They also go toward the U-Pass, as well as arts and culture clubs like Film Society, Blank Vinyl Project and the Jazz Club.

Schreyer has been advocating for online students to be able to opt-in to the AMS fee slate in order to get these benefits. In addition, she has been pushing for a seat dedicated to online Health Sciences and Arts students on the AMS Council.

Change-of-Coverage Period

The Change-of-Coverage Period allows you to enroll yourself and your spouse/dependents if you have another health insurance plan that is ending. This is a special enrollment period (SEP) triggered by a loss of coverage, and you can choose to have a new AMS plan start on the first day of the month following your current plans end date.

This SEP also provides an opportunity to make other coverage changes outside of the normal Open Enrollment Period. For example, it allows you to separate your health insurance plans after a divorce or legal separation or purchase individual health insurance if you lose employer-provided coverage. It also lets you add or remove dependents from a plan, and it gives you the option to increase your coverage to account for increased expenses.

Opt-out

To opt out means to reject or refuse something. For instance, students can choose to opt out of having their personal information shared with a particular business. Alternatively, students can choose to not receive unsolicited product information, such as a Robinson list.

Generally, an employer can’t offer an opt-out payment if they know that the employee or their tax family has minimum essential coverage (MEC) through the individual insurance market or government coverage such as Medicare Part A, most Medicaid plans and CHIP programs. This violates HIPAA nondiscrimination rules.

Students wishing to opt out of the AMS/GSS Health must do so during the Change-of-Coverage Period as outlined on the Studentcare website. Using the online portal cuts down on processing time so your opt out will be reflected in your tuition sooner!

International Students

International students provide a unique perspective on a variety of topics. They challenge stereotypes, enhance global awareness and help us to build connections with people from around the world.

When they graduate, international students bring valuable skills to their workplace. In addition, they enrich their home country with new perspectives and ideas while also contributing to economic growth.

In fact, international student enrollment is the single largest source of foreign income in American universities. Learn more about the benefits of recruiting international students for your institution from the NAFSA website.