Waiver FAQs
- What if my Waiver Request is denied?
- What if I miss the July 31 or December 31 deadline?
- How do I know if I need to submit proof of other insurance by completing a Waiver Request?
- What if I cannot provide proof of insurance by the posted deadline?
- What if my current insurance plan may change in the future during an open enrollment period?
- What if my insurance information changed after my waiver request was submitted and approved?
- What if my current insurance provides coverage for the entire Fall term but not for the entire Spring term?
- What if my current insurance provides coverage for the entire Spring term but not for the entire Fall term?
1. What if my Waiver Request is denied?
The University has established certain waiver criteria to ensure your healthcare coverage is adequate in the Williamsburg area and that you don't have financial barriers to obtaining the healthcare that you may required while at school. If your current insurance does not meet these specific waiver criteria and you respond to the waiver questions that your health insurance does not meet the requirement, then your Waiver Request will be denied. However, this is not a final decision and you will not immediately be assessed the Health Insurance Policy fee to your W&M Student Account. You may submit an 2024-2025 Waiver Decision Appeal form to place your Waiver Request into the queue to be reviewed again along with additional information that you provide on the appeal form about your current healthcare coverage and how you or your family intends to ensure you have the access to primary and specialty healthcare in Williamsburg and the financial means to pay for this healthcare. Many waivers are approved on appeal and submitting the appeal form is the ONLY way to have your Waiver Request reviewed again. These appeals are reviewed individually, on a case-by-case basis so please allow at least a week for a decision to be made about your appeal. The student will be sent an email if their Waiver Request is approved on appeal. Emailing or calling the Student Insurance Coordinator will not initiate an Waiver Request Appeal and neither the student nor Insurance Administrators may change the responses to the Waiver Request questions.
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2. What if I missed the July 31 or December 31 deadline?
At the discretion of the Business Manager of the Student Health Center, in consultation with the SHC Director and the Assoc. Vice President for Health & Wellness, it may be possible to submit a late Waiver Request for consideration after the posted deadline. Please contact the [[trsike, Student Insurance Office]], (757) 221-2978 to inquire about whether Waiver Requests are still being considered. Typically, the university continues to accept late Waiver Requests a few weeks into the academic term, but not further. It is important to note that there is a point each semester at which Waiver Requests may no longer be submitted and will not be considered. If you have been billed for the Student Health Insurance and Waiver Requests are still being considered, upon approval of your Waiver Request, the charge will be removed from your Student Account within 1-3 business days. You will see the posted credit under your eServices Account Activity (eBill statements are not updated; they are generated monthly with a previous balance or with new activity). If you have been billed for the Student Health Insurance and the waiver period has already ended, you are responsible for these charges and if they aren't paid within 30 days of the due date, the Bursar's office will place a financial hold on your student records that will prevent registration, transcript processing or receipt of your diploma.
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3. How do I know if I need to submit proof of other insurance by completing a Waiver Request?
If you are REGISTERED for full-time credits (even if you are BILLED for less), then you are expected to provide W&M with proof of insurance each academic year or you will be enrolled in and billed for the Student Insurance. Part-time students (including graduate students on Continuous Enrollment) are not required by the university to have health insurance as a condition of enrollment so these students do not need to submit a waiver request. If part-time or continuous enrollment students are enrolled and billed for the Student Insurance, please contact us to correct this error as you are not eligible for nor should you enroll in the Student Insurance.
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4. What if I cannot provide proof of insurance by the posted deadline?
If, for whatever reason, you cannot furnish proof of other insurance by submitting a Waiver Request by the posted deadline, then you will be billed for and enrolled in the Student Insurance Plan. Unfortunately, we cannot make exceptions to this procedure. However, you will be able to furnish W&M with proof of other insurance by submitting a Waiver Request through at least the end of the Add/Drop period. It isn't necessary to make a formal request to have the charge removed from your student account. Upon approval of your Waiver Request, the charge will be removed from your Student Account within 2-3 business days as long as you haven't utilized the Student Insurance plan. You will see the posted credit under your eServices Account Activity. Requests to have the Student Health Insurance charge removed from your student account beyond Add/Drop should be directed to the [[clharr, Business Manager]] of the Student Health Center. See FAQ #1 for more information.
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5. What if my current insurance plan may change in the future during an open enrollment period?
Almost every insurance plan has an open enrollment period in which changes to the health insurance plan (including enrollment in an alternate plan) may be made. These changes to the health insurance plan would usually take effect after the open enrollment period on either July 1 for plans following a fiscal year and January 1 for plans following a calendar year. If you do not anticipate or are not aware of any changes to your insurance plan or carrier, then please provide the university with your CURRENT insurance information making the assumption that everything will remain the same and that this insurance plan WILL provide coverage for both the Fall and Spring academic terms. Your waiver request will be approved. If insurance changes do occur at a later date, then you should complete and submit an online Notice of Change of Insurance to make W&M aware of your current insurance coverage.
If you know your insurance plan will be changing July 1, then please provide the university with your NEW insurance information even though you may not have an assigned ID number yet. Simply provide the master policy or group number in the Policy Number field. Your waiver request will be approved.
If you know your insurance plan will be changing January 1, then please provide W&M with your CURRENT insurance information and correctly respond to the two waiver questions - Yes, your health insurance DOES provide coverage for the entire Fall term and No, your health insurance DOES NOT provide coverage for the entire Spring term. Your waiver request will automatically be denied by the system AND then you must complete the Waiver Decision Appeal Form to provide the university with your extenuating circumstances and so that your waiver request can be placed into the queue to be individually reviewed again. A partial waiver for the Fall only may be granted and then you will have another opportunity at a later date to submit a waiver request for the Spring term.
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6. What if my insurance information changed after my waiver request was submitted and approved?
You will need to file a Notice of Change of Insurance form so that W&M has the most up-to-date insurance information on file. This is especially important to ensure that you are compliant with the Insurance Requirement and also to ensure that the Student Health Center has the most up-to-date insurance information should they need to refer you for health care by an outside provider or medical facility.
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7. What if my current insurance provides coverage for the entire Fall term but not for the entire Spring term?
Complete the Waiver Request providing the university with your current insurance information by the posted due date. Answer the waiver questions correctly indicating that your current insurance DOES cover you for the entire Fall term but DOES NOT cover you for the entire Spring term. Your waiver request will automatically be denied by the system. In the onscreen and/or separate email denial confirmations, there will be a link to the Waiver Decision Appeal Form, complete and submit the Appeal Form providing W&M with more information about when your current insurance coverage expires and what you intend to do for insurance coverage once your current insurance expires. If you intend to purchase the Student Insurance Plan for the Spring/Summer coverage, you should also submit an College Enrollment Request Form for this coverage period only to ensure that you are correctly enrolled in and billed for the Student Insurance in Nov./Dec. since you submitted a Waiver Request also. Then wait for an email notifying you of the appeal decision.
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8. What if my current insurance provides coverage for the entire Spring term but not for the entire Fall term?
You may be enrolled in the Student Insurance Plan for the Fall term and then submit an online Spring Student Insurance Waiver Request (available 12/01) to waive the coverage for the Spring semester if your insurance coverage will be changing and you will have other adequate health insurance coverage for the Spring term. It is important to note that you won't be able to submit a Waiver Request for the Spring term at the beginning of the school year because you will not have the other policy information needed to complete the request, so you MUST wait until the Spring Waiver Request is open and accepting submissions in November and December to file proof of other insurance for the Spring term. You may wish to mark your calendar as a reminder. If your student account has already been billed the Health Insurance Policy - Spring charge, please allow 3-5 business days from when your Spring Waiver Request is approved for the credit to post to your Student Account.
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