If you are graduating from or separating from Weill Cornell, your health insurance coverage — and any dependent coverage — will end on the last day of the month in which you graduate or separate.

If you paid for coverage out of pocket and your insurance charges are prorated, any resulting credit will be refunded to you. We strongly recommend enrolling in direct deposit to receive any student refunds securely and directly to your bank account.

Your coverage termination date will depend on your individual program dates.

M.D. Program

If you graduate from the M.D. program in the spring semester, your SHP coverage will end June 30.

Ph.D. program

If you graduate from the Ph.D. program, your SHP coverage will end on the last day of your stipend termination month.

M.S. program

• If you graduate from an M.S. program in the spring semester (PHS, MSPA, MSCB, MSCEP, MSBIO), your SHP coverage will end May 31.
• If you graduate from an M.S. program in the summer semester (PHS, MSPA, MSCB, MSCEP, MSBIO), your SHP coverage will end August 31.
• If you graduate from an M.S. program in the fall semester (PHS, MSPA, MSCB, MSCEP, MSBIO), your SHP coverage will end December 31. 

SHP Extended Coverage

You and your dependents have the option to continue your coverage for 90 days (no more or less) past your coverage termination date. 

To continue coverage, login to LEARN, “Financial Aid & Billing”, “ Student Health Plan (SHP)”, and under 2025-2026 Cornell University SHP > Plan Details > Other Forms, submit request for “Coverage Extension”. 

Your student account will be charged and you will be required to pay the 3 month premium of $2,187 plus a $78.00 program fee for each individual under the plan. 

Other Insurance Options

As you prepare to graduate, it’s important to ensure you have health insurance coverage that applies in the location where you will be living.

Graduates who will remain in the United States and are not enrolling in another academic program or joining an employer-sponsored health plan should explore coverage options through their state’s health insurance exchange. To purchase insurance through the exchange, you will typically need to provide proof of residency, such as a local address, prior-year tax information, and a Social Security number.

Health insurance purchased through a state exchange cannot be secured in advance of your Student Health Plan (SHP) end date. To obtain exchange coverage before your graduation or separation date, you must first terminate your SHP coverage.

All exchange plans offer tax credit eligibility based on income. Depending on income level, applicants may qualify for Medicaid or an Essential Plan, both of which generally offer the lowest cost-sharing options in recognition of limited disposable income.

If you plan to live in New York State after graduation and are seeking insurance through nystateofhealth.ny.gov, you will need to enroll in a full-year plan. 

If you are applying for another insurance after you graduation/separation from WCM, you can download and provide to your new insurance, your Aetna “Verification of Coverage” which shows the insurance termination date.  

Students with approved leave of absence (LOA) have two options regarding their health insurance coverage. They can 

1. terminate coverage (default) on the last day of the month in which their leave begins, or
2. continue coverage for 3 months.

Students who opt to enroll in the health insurance extension are responsible for the premium and must pay within 60 days of leave approval to maintain insurance coverage. If payment is not received by the deadline coverage will terminate on the last day of the month in which the leave began.

If leave extends into the next academic year, the student will be auto-enrolled in the new plan year on the first day of the month they return and billed accordingly. 

Returning From Leave

Any Weill Cornell Medicine student who returns from a LOA and did not participate in the insurance waiver/enrollment period at the start of the academic term will be auto enrolled in the Student Health Plan (SHP) and billed accordingly. If the student has comparable coverage, they will be required to submit the insurance termination request through the Gallagher Student Health and their term charges will be adjusted once approved.

If the student does not submit the insurance termination request within 30 days of the return date of their leave (as recorded in the student information system), they will be responsible for each month’s premium until the form is submitted. 

Weill Cornell-affiliated Travel

All registered travelers on Cornell-related international travel are fully covered - at no cost to the traveler - under Cornell's accident, sickness, and emergency care insurance plan. For more information, visit Cornell’s SHP Aboard information. 

In most cases, you will have to pay for care in full at the time the service is provided and then submit a claim for reimbursement. Be sure to receive an itemized bill and a receipt, including the date of service, diagnosis, and the dollar amount for the visit. You may then submit a claim for reimbursement to Aetna. 

Aetna will reimburse you for charges for covered benefits according to the participating provider care benefit level, minus any applicable co-payments, and will mail you a check directly.

For benefits covered by SHP, your cost-share will be at the In-Network provider rate (see Summary of Benefits Coverage and Certificate of Coverage). 

To contact the Aetna Student Health Claims Administrators when you are outside of the United States, please call 617-218-8400 (collect calls are accepted).

Prior authorizations are not needed to receive health care outside of the U.S. 

Also, view information on WCM’s international travel assistance program.

Personal or Recreational Travel Outside the US

Students traveling outside of the United States should secure their own travel assistance plan to use for urgent and emergent medical and mental health needs; to find a doctor or health care facility; or for assistance with medical evacuations or guarantees of payment applicable to their travel location. Some travel assistance plans may offer primary coverage. Gallagher Student Health provides some options for travel assistance plans. 

The federal government's COVID-19 State of Emergency is ending. As of May 12th, 2023, coverage for COVID-19 testing and treatment will change:

• COVID-19 lab tests: You will pay a copay, coinsurance, or deductible at in-network locations. Refer to your summary of benefits for details on cost-sharing.
• Office visits related to COVID-19 will also follow normal plan cost-share.
• COVID-19 vaccines, including boosters: You will pay $0 for the vaccine at in-network locations.
• COVID-19 at-home test kits, also known as over the counter (OTC) test kits: You will pay the retail cost of the test kits.
• Anti-viral medications or treatments, like Paxlovid: Copays may apply.  

SHP offers limited reimbursement for exercise facility membership, processed as a medical claim to Aetna Student Health. To make a medical claim for exercise facility reimbursement, you must provide verified documentation of at least fifty visits in a six-month period and proof of payment. This documentation must be obtained from your exercise facility. 

Please see the Certificate of Coverage and with documentation log into Aetna to make a medical claim.