Health Insurance

Medical insurance must be dealt with seriously when it comes to US. Medical expenses can be enormous if you are not insured. So, staying in US without insurance is a risky business. There are various options available for health insurance.

1) Getting insurance from INDIA
You can get a medical insurance policy for 1 year from India. This policy can be renewed after a year while you are in US. Some of the companies that provide such medical insurance schemes are – TATA AIG, Thomas Cook, Bajaj Allianz etc. You can explore around and you will find many more names.
Pros:
i) The insurance from India would be the cheapest option. Typically you get such a policy at around Rs. 10000 to Rs. 15000 per year.
ii) You will be insured for a year and later your parents can renew the policy for you in India.
Cons:
i) Most of these insurance schemes do not pay upfront i.e. you will have to pay for your medical expenses (if needed) and later claim for that amount. The right to grant funds equal to the amount claimed, partially or fully, remains with the company.
ii) In case of major health expenditure, this could be very inconvenient as you will need to pay all the expenses in US$ and later claim for the same. The procedure to claim the refund and get reimbursed can be lengthy.
Conclusion:
This is the cheapest option with a risk that you will need to pay upfront for your expenses if the need arises.

2) Getting insurance in US
You can get a decent insurance policy in US. But, you will need to have your social security number (SSN) to get such a policy. Typically, you will get your SSN around mid October. So, you need to have a policy till that period from India.

Companies mentioned above (TATA AIG, Bajaj Allianz, Thomas Cook etc.) also have insurance policies that take care for your travel and stay of short period (say 60 days/ 90 days). In case you plan to get a policy in US, you should get such a short term policy for your initial days (when you may require it most).

Once you have your SSN, you can get insurance policy in US. In the University of Maryland, it is NOT mandatory to take the university's insurance policy. So you have following options –
a) If you have assistantship –
In this case, you can take advantage of the various health insurance policies offered at the University of Maryland, College Park. As an employee of the State of Maryland, you get these policies at a cheaper rate. The most popular is the one offered by university's health center – MAMSI. You will be given detailed information about this during your orientation sessions that are MANDATORY for international students. Typically, these policies cost around $50 per month and it is deducted from your pay-check at the source. The advantage of taking MAMSI policy is that many services at the university health center become free for you.

b) If you do NOT have an assistantship-
In this case, taking the university health insurance scheme is next to impossible considering its cost. So, you will have to find one for you. There are various options available and you have choice to choose one that fits to your requirements and budget. The popular schemes can be found at http://www.isoa.org/. Typically these policies will cost you around $30 + per month.
Pros:
i) Depending upon your scheme, you will need to pay only the deductible if the need arises and the excess expenses will be taken care by your policy. There is nothing like paying upfront and then claiming it.
ii) You have choice to choose one after coming here.
Cons:
i) These schemes come at a cost which is much higher if you convert it to rupees and compare with the cost of schemes available in India
Conclusion:
These schemes are more convenient. You get to choose one to match your needs. Most important is that generally, you do not have to pay upfront (apart from some minimum amount known as deductible). But, it is costly if converted to rupees and compared.

Just a minor correction. You DO NEED SSN to get university's health insurance. But, you DO NOT need SSN to get other insurance schemes in US. Still, you will need to be insured for your initial days. So, in either case, if you are going for the option to take a health insurance policy in US, you will need to have temporary (around 90 days) insurance from India.

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