International students weigh in on health care options, lack thereof

As his floor mates packed goggles and scarves for their January ski trip, international student Jack Cuthbertson worried about health insurance.

Students from other countries are required to purchase health insurance through IU upon enrollment. But many think the cost is too high and being forced to pay it is unfair.

“It’s a bit strange that you can be charged several grand for a broken bone,” Cuthbertson said. “Insurance in America is scarier than it is in England.”

Cuthbertson is an exchange student from England who came to IU from the University of Kent in Canterbury, England. He paid a precautionary $770 when he enrolled in IU’s International Services Office’s spring health care plan, supplied by Aetna Student Health group.

Spring and summer plans are bundled for the roughly 75 percent of international students who go through IU and Aetna for insurance.

The $770 fee pays for insurance during the summer months when most students go home, said Christan Royer, the manager of health care program services at IU Health Insurance Human Resources.

“This is to ensure all international students have adequate coverage, as some remain in the U.S. or travel over the summer before returning to the IU campus,” Royer said.

“The Aetna plans provide coverage nationally and internationally, so students are able to use the plan during their summer travels.”

Although the bundling of spring and summer is inconvenient for those who travel back to their home country in the summer, it’s not the biggest problem, said senior and president of IU’s Kappa Eta Phi business fraternity Junshuo Tan.

“Most of international students’ families prepare that amount of money when they decide to come here,” Tan said. “The real issue here is tuition.”

Tan traveled from Malaysia four years ago to attend the Kelley School of Business, a program highly regarded in his home country.

He said he is dissatisfied with how expensive an American education is, but is grateful his tuition matches that of out-of-state students.

“My friends from Michigan pay as much as I do for tuition,” Tan said.

Royer explained that although most international students pay for IU’s Aetna insurance, arrangements can be made so the requirement may be waived.

“We sponsor a plan that meets federal regulations for students and scholars here on certain visa types,” Royer said. “Students are welcome to purchase other coverage if they find something comparable and receive information about waivers from the International Services Office.”

Cuthbertson said he has accepted the reality of paying for health insurance during the summer months.

“IU is one of the better colleges when it comes to health insurance,” Cuthbertson said. “It’s a hassle in general to get insurance.”

While he is only at IU for a one-year exchange program, Cuthbertson said he understands the frustrations of the bundled health care plan.

“If you come here full-time from a foreign country, I imagine that’s a lot more frustrating to go back home over the summer and pay needless insurance here,” Cuthbertson said.

But he said he acknowledged that most international students who have the financial means to travel here for school also have the funds for the pricey health plan.

“If they’re from developing countries and they can afford tuition, you can assume they’re from wealthier families who can afford health insurance,” he said. “It’s not like they suddenly got burdened with this fee. They knew about it coming here.”

Tan said he hopes his academic and cultural education at IU will be worth the investment.

“It’s really tough for an international student to get a job here,” Tan said. “I’m working my best because I love America.”

Even though Cutherbertson will return to England in May, his $770 will pay for American insurance through the month of August.

Still, he said he thought it was the best option available.

“It’s so much easier to use IU’s plan because you know it is legitimate,” Cuthbertson said.

But with the security of legitimacy comes responsibility, he said.

“If you are a foreigner here, you are completely in charge of your health,” he said. “The government will not help you.”

Follow reporter Hannah Alani on Twitter at @hannahalani.

Editor's note: This story was updated. A previous version incorrectly stated Jack Cuthbertson transferred to IU from Kent University in Ohio.