Do You Need Health Insurance For Students?

Finding affordable health insurance for students is a very important task. A single major injury can cause medical bills that can financially cripple a person for many years after the event has already passed. Students, particularly college students, are also one of the demographics of people who are most likely to go without health care coverage, in part because of cost, and in large part often because of that "young and invincible" feeling many youth possess.

What many individuals don't know is that health insurance for college students is often actually quite cheap since one of the largest determining factors in insurance rates is age. Everything else being equal, the older an individual is the more they will pay in monthly premiums. Because younger people tend to be at peak health, cost should not be a major factor in finding good health insurance.

In fact, even on tight budgets there are many health insurance companies that have taken advantage of a college student's likely good health by offering a wide array of low cost options for students to still carry health insurance for in case of emergencies.

If you are a college student looking for some type of a cheap policy, or a parent concerned about your child's welfare, there are a few great areas to start while looking for a policy:

1. Look for a temporary health insurance policy. These policies tend to be weighted less for doctor's check ups, but more for emergency situations. These policies also tend to be among the cheapest, since they only cover major hospital visits, but they cover for worst case scenarios and can usually even be bought by students taking a year off or who are between colleges.

2. Talk to the school. Some colleges and universities make health insurance coverage mandatory. If students are not covered by their parents' plans, or they can not find a cheap and appropriate temporary insurance plan, then sometimes the school itself offers insurance coverage that can be purchased.

Both of these are great options for covering students. Since temporary health insurance doesn't cover dental, glasses, physicals, or regular check ups the cost stays low since the chances of a large accident are small—but that is why the insurance is there, just in case you are one of the unfortunates who needs an emergency room visit, or has a sports injury, and needs to make a hospital visit. These cheaper plans are often affordable for even the most budget conscious of students, and give the coverage necessary for peace of mind.

While prices for education keep climbing and it is harder and harder for students to make ends meet, health insurance is not one area that you can afford to skimp on. There are good health insurance plans for students, and cheaper ones that can cover all emergencies. This is one case where it is definitely better to have and not need, than to need and not have.