Health Insurance Waiver

If you already have health insurance (covered sufficiently either by your own private insurance or under your parent's plan and the insurance covers you in the District of Columbia metropolitan area), you do not need to purchase student health insurance available through Gallaudet University. However, you must take the step of waiving student health insurance through online business registration in your Bison account. See more information and instructions below about the waiver process.

The waiver must be renewed annually, even though your own or your parent's health insurance may not have changed. If you do not waive student health insurance and submit a copy (front and back) of your own or your parent's insurance card as proof of sufficient coverage, you will automatically be billed a one-year non-refundable health insurance fee which will be charged to your student account.

Students who have Medicaid insurance from the District of Columbia, Maryland, or Virginia may waive the Gallaudet insurance. However, if you have Medicaid insurance from any other state other than the District of Columbia, Maryland, or Virginia, you must purchase the Gallaudet insurance or obtain other insurance that will cover your medical needs in the District of Columbia metropolitan area.

Waiver of Gallaudet University's health insurance must be completed by the first day of classes. Because the waiver process may take some time, you are advised to provide waiver information at least a month before the start of classes.

On the first day of classes (August 26, 2013), your student account will automatically be billed for Gallaudet University's health insurance plan. A waiver submitted after this date, thus reversing the health insurance charge on your student account, will involve a $100 processing fee to be charged to your student account. Students may waive the health insurance with the $100 processing fee from August 26, 2013 through August 30, 2013.

Students will not be allowed to waive, for any reason, the automatic billing of the campus health insurance plan after the deadline. This is a non-negotiable deadline. If students have not waived the insurance by then, the health insurance charge for that year will remain on their student account and duplicate insurance coverage may occur.

Waiver Process

Waiving the health insurance is a two-step process that must be completed before you will be waived from Gallaudet's insurance.

First, you must waive the insurance through the mandatory online business registration in your Bison account.

Secondly, you must submit a copy of your insurance card (front and back) to Student Financial Services (SFS), either by fax at 202-651-5711 or email at student.accounts@gallaudet.edu or bring it to SFS in College Hall B-04.

Your health insurance will not be waived unless you have completed both steps of the insurance waiver process and SFS reviews and determines if your private health insurance coverage is sufficient. SFS will notify you of the waiver request decision within three business days. For questions or concerns, please email SFS at student.accounts@gallaudet.edu.

Instructions for completing your online business registration in your Bison account is posted on the SFS website.