Study Abroad Health Insurance

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Health, Emergency, and Travel Assistance Insurance for Study Abroad Students

For the safety of its students, Southern Illinois University Carbondale requires that all students participating in study abroad programs have international study abroad insurance coverage. Since most U.S. health insurance carriers do not adequately cover the range of issues facing students who study abroad, SIU has selected an international health insurance provider and negotiated rates for all its study abroad students.

Southern Illinois University Carbondale requires that all study abroad students carry health insurance coverage through Arthur J. Gallagher and Co. Participants in SIU Global Seminars (faculty-led programs) will be enrolled in Gallagher automatically, and the insurance premium will be charged to the Study Abroad Program cost. Other study abroad participants will be enrolled by the Study Abroad Office. The premium varies based on your program length. For Gallagher coverage you may view a complete copy of the insurance policy.

Once enrolled, you will want to print the travel card found here, as well as the insurance information that will be automatically emailed to you.

Before you leave for your program, please be sure to sign the front and back of your ID card.

Arriving Early or Extending Your Stay

If you are arriving early or extending your stay abroad after the completion of your program, you are strongly urged to purchase additional health insurance coverage. You may purchase one additional month of coverage directly from Gallagher. Note that Southern Illinois University Carbondale will generally report your coverage up to a week beyond your official departure date from the study abroad program, unless doing so would push your insurance into a higher cost category (for many short-term programs, we do not report extra days as doing so would increase costs). In general, however, if your extended stay falls within those 5 days, you do not need to seek additional coverage. We recommend that you do the same if applying individually.

Exempting from Gallagher

Students participating in study abroad programs with the following providers will use the provider's insurance instead of Gallagher Insurance:

  • AIFS
  • CEA
  • ISA
  • ISEP (International Student Exchange Program)
  • Others with mandatory insurance may be allowed on a case-by-case basis

U.S.-Based Insurance (Your Family Plan or Your SIU Student Plan)

You are currently covered by health insurance either through the SIU Student Health Insurance Plan or by your family's plan (if you previously exempted out of the SIU Student Plan). We urge you to continue carrying your U.S.-based coverage while you are abroad, for several reasons. Please refer to the Gallagher policy for more details about exclusions.

  • Gallagher has limited coverage for preexisting conditions (including medications). If you might need care for a pre-existing condition, you are advised to continue coverage with the insurance company already covering you for that condition.
  • Possible Coverage Gap: Most study abroad programs have start and/or end dates that do not coincide completely with your U.S.-based insurance exemption, leaving you uninsured for a period of time between plans. For example, the SIU health insurance ends when the next semester officially begins. If your departure date is after this, there may be a gap in your coverage. You do not pay regular campus fees while studying abroad so you will not be covered by SIU insurance during that term.

Host Country-Specific Insurance

Some study abroad programs or host countries require additional local insurance coverage. You are welcome to try to exempt from the additional coverage, but in most cases exemptions are not possible. These plans often provide coverage that is similar, but not identical, to that offered by Gallagher.

Theft, Trip Cancellation, and Other Insurance

We recommend that you consider buying supplemental insurance coverage addressing trip interruption or cancellation and theft. These may be two different insurance policies. You can search for these policies through your personal travel agent or online. Sometimes the credit card with which you purchase airline tickets will provide some coverage. SIU is unable to provide coverage for such losses.