Protect Your International Students with Group Insurance
If you’re taking a group of students abroad, an essential part of your job is making sure these students will be safe throughout the trip. For international students enrolled at your school, you want to ensure they have adequate coverage. One way to do this is to have the proper study abroad insurance or school group insurance in place before the program starts.
Whether you’re home to a thousand international students, leading a group of student volunteers, or overseeing an academic excursion, proper medical insurance for international student groups is invaluable. Get coverage for everything from medical emergencies to stolen laptops, and don’t let problems threaten their international educational experience.
When you contact our licensed brokers, setting up global insurance for student groups is relatively simple. Our brokers are ready to answer your questions and find the right overseas student group insurance for your needs. Remember, not only will this coverage protect the students’ health and well-being, but it will also help protect your school or organization from liability concerns.
Global Benefits for Organizations
- Offering group plans for international health, life and travel
- Request a quote from the leading insurers around the globe
- A licensed agent will provide quotes and expert advice
What Type of Coverage Do Student Groups Need?
There are several types of group plans, but the best insurance for student groups will be a policy whose coverage matches your specific plans. Your options will also differ based on what country you’re coming from and where your group is traveling to. Consider what’s happened on past trips and what activities are on the schedule for the upcoming journey when deciding what kind of coverage is right for your student group.
Travel Medical Insurance
This benefit pays for treatment should one of your students gets sick or injured and requires medical care. It will be helpful if any unexpected medical issues occur during the student trip. And if someone has to pay for medical care themselves, they should be able to be reimbursed for those expenses if they have this insurance.
Medical Evacuation Insurance
Medical Evacuation benefits pay to transport the insured to the nearest hospital or facility that can treat an emergency medical condition. Someone with an unexpected illness or injury often needs ongoing treatment. Once stabilized, it will be determined if the client needs to be transported home or if they can continue on their trip. Most people would prefer to receive that kind of care in their home country, where they have more support. If it is determined that the insured needs to return home, his policy handles the transportation expenses.
Trip Interruption and Cancellation Coverage
What if one of the students in a group has a family emergency before the trip begins or loses their passport in the middle of the journey? Trip interruption and cancellation coverage offer financial protection should a student group member have to cancel or unexpectedly end their trip.
Extreme Sports Benefits
What kind of activities are you planning for your student trip? If your group members will be hiking, scuba diving, or engaging in any other organized sports, this insurance provides extra coverage in case of an accident.
Additional benefits include coverage for lost luggage, political risks, natural disasters, and more. Ask your broker for more details.
Other Questions You Might Have
Do You Have to Travel Together on a Student Group Insurance Policy?
The benefit of a group plan is that you can add and remove students regularly depending on your program schedule, enrollment dates, or other factors. The administration is relatively easy to manage.
If you are going abroad for a single trip, most people will travel together, and it is not an issue. You can specify different start and end dates for each traveler when you purchase coverage.
If you have students coming and going throughout the year, then you can provide an updated monthly census to add and remove them as needed.
Do International Student Groups Have to Have Insurance Outside the USA?
Only some countries require it to get a visa, but a travel or health insurance policy is generally a good idea. That’s true even if the group visits a country with universal healthcare. Countries with this coverage may still expect visitors to pay for any medical care they receive, even if they’re in an accident or have another emergency.
Even if you have coverage for emergency care, that doesn’t solve the problem of getting a sick student back to his or her home country. It can be very expensive to transport an ill or injured person safely. International student group medical insurance can provide needed solutions in this type of emergency situation if the policy includes medical evacuation. In addition, having coverage for international student groups also ensures the trip leader will have access to important documents if a student has to seek care.
What Insurers Cover International Student Groups?
Some of the leading providers offering insurance to school groups include GeoBlue, United Healthcare, WorldTrips, and IMG. Several others can provide coverage for your school group or organization. Select providers focus on school groups in the United States, while others work better for overseas institutions. Contact your broker for specific advice on which insurers would work best for your organization.
Does the US Require Insurance for Visiting Student Groups?
International student groups don’t have to have insurance to visit the United States. However, any type of healthcare in the USA can be very expensive. If a student sprains her ankle on a group hiking trip, just one visit to the emergency room could cost thousands of dollars. A specialist in orthopedics might check in on the patient, or the hospital could recommend an X-ray to ensure the student’s ankle isn’t broken. No group leader would want to put someone’s health at risk, but paying the fees associated with these medical services can really add up. That’s where group health insurance for students abroad or school group insurance with emergency medical coverage can come in to save the day.
Most schools will require F1 students to have insurance. If you are looking for a quality plan for your students, our agents can assist you with finding a new plan or comparing options to your existing one.
The F-1 student visa is a non-immigrant visa that permits international students to come to the United States and pursue their studies at institutions accredited by the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP).
How Much Are Group Health Insurance Fees for International Students in the USA?
The costs of international student group plans are very affordable. The base-level coverage starts at about $1 per day or $30 monthly. If you need more enhanced benefits, the premiums will be higher. Other factors affecting costs are the travelers’ age, deductibles chosen, and the countries where the students are studying.
There are many different options for international health insurance for student groups in the USA, so it’s impossible to list one definite price. If your students take a short trip to the U.S., global school insurance with medical coverage might be the best fit. This insurance is valid for trips that last for less than a year, and policies are available to cover groups of students.
There are still choices to make regarding insurance for international student groups. Travel Medical insurance will cover most expenses for any medical treatment someone receives, whether they suddenly become ill or are in a traffic accident. You’ll need to get what’s called extreme sports coverage for your group if they’ll be doing anything like skiing, rock climbing, or even hiking in remote places.
But don’t worry about researching coverage and calculating prices for a range of policies on your own! If you want to learn more, contact one of our licensed brokers. Our brokers know all about overseas student group health coverage, and they look forward to helping you find plans that fit your needs and budget.
Got Your Coverage? Get Ready to Go!
Please contact one of our licensed brokers for international student group insurance for an upcoming trip. They’re always happy to discuss your specific plans, needs, and budget. As long as ten or more students are traveling together in a group, there are student group policies that will cover the duration of your trip!
Do try to talk to a broker as soon as possible to make sure your group will qualify for all types of coverage. Some insurance companies need a group policy to be purchased soon after participants have begun to pay for a trip.
Global Benefits for Organizations
- Offering group plans for international health, life and travel
- Request a quote from the leading insurers around the globe
- A licensed agent will provide quotes and expert advice
Once you’ve found the best student insurance policy for your journey, you’ll find it’s easy to buy this coverage. You’ll only need to complete one application to protect everyone on the trip.
Author: Andrew Blomberg is the Vice President of Global Benefits at International Citizens Insurance. Andrew is a licensed insurance broker with expertise in the areas of international group travel, global health, life, and disability insurance. Having worked and traveled throughout the world, he has the experience to provide personal insight along with his industry knowledge. Andrew is dedicated to providing group benefits to organizations, large and small, for today's global workforce. Connect with him on LinkedIn.
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