Opt-Out/Waiver

Degree and non-degree seeking students (excluding DUS and Consortium students) enrolled in 4+ credit hours, a 0-credit research/dissertation course, or any other course that is considered to equate to full-time enrollment are automatically enrolled in the Student Health Insurance Plan (“SHIP”). SHIP enrolled students are eligible to waive if they meet the criteria outlined below: 

To be eligible for a waiver, Vanderbilt requires students to provide evidence of health insurance coverage equal to or better than the coverage provided by SHIP.

To qualify for a waiver, your health insurance plan must:

• Be fully compliant with the provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and all state and federal mandates. Click here to confirm if your plan is ACA compliant;
• Be underwritten by an insurance company based in the United States with a U.S. telephone number and address for submission of claims;
• Provide unlimited access to doctors, specialists, hospitals and other healthcare providers within 25 miles of campus – unless the student is fully online in a distance learning program;
• Cover a minimum of 80% with no lifetime maximum (i.e., unlimited benefit) per accident or sickness OR the co-insurance must not exceed 20%.  This requirement can be waived if:
  • It is a U.S. employer plan OR
  • It is an individual plan with an individual deductible of no more than $1,000 AND an individual out-of-pocket maximum of no more than $5,000;
• Have an in-network individual deductible no more than $1,000 per policy year (this will be waived for U.S. employer plans);
• Provide coverage for the period beginning January 1, 2025 with the expectation of continuing coverage through August 11, 2025.

**Please note, the following types of plans are not acceptable for a waiver. ** 

1. Short-Term Limited Duration Plans
2. Medical Cost-Sharing Plans
3. Healthcare Sharing Ministry Plans
4. Medisave Plans
5. Out-of-State HMO plans (unless proof is provided that there are no coverage limits in Nashville)
6. Out-of-State Medicaid Plan
7. UHC – Oxford Insurance Plan
8. Children’s Health Insurance Plans
9. Travel Plans
10. Plans filed outside of the United States of America
11. Individual/Marketplace Plans (international students only)
12. Home-country employer plans (international students only)

Waiver applications will be reviewed and verified as active with the insurance carrier.

Notice of Acceptance or Rejection of waiver applications will be sent to the student’s Vanderbilt email address within seven (7) business days

Vanderbilt allows for students who may have obtained comparable coverage from a U.S. based insurance company since Fall enrollment to complete a Spring/Summer waiver form to terminate their SHIP coverage as of December 31, 2025.

To qualify to submit a Spring/Summer comparable coverage waiver, your alternate plan must meet the following requirements:

• Coverage must be effective on or before January 1, 2026.
• For the request to be approved, the other insurance plan must be fully compliant with the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and comparable to the Vanderbilt University Student Health Insurance Plan. Requests will be audited to confirm coverage is comparable.
• Students who incur claims using the student health insurance plan on or after January 1, 2026, will not be permitted to disenroll from spring/summer coverage.
• If you submitted a waiver request and/or waiver appeal for Fall 2025 and were denied, you may not submit the same insurance coverage for a Spring/Summer waiver. If a student submits a waiver with the same coverage from what was submitted in the fall, their comparable coverage waiver request will be denied.

Procedure to submit a Spring/Summer Comparable Coverage waiver:

1. Login to your account here and complete the information requested on the form. 
2. You may submit your comparable coverage waiver request between December 1, 2025, and January 4, 2026.
3. If your Comparable Coverage Waiver is approved for Spring/Summer semester, you will be notified, and Student Accounts will remove the spring premium charges. If no action is taken by January 4, 2026, you will be responsible for all spring charges.