Health Insurance Requirement

All health insurance plans must adhere to the Affordable Care Act’s regulations.  Proof of comparable coverage or the minimum coverage guidelines that can be used to see if you are eligible to “opt out” of the Student Health Insurance Plan for domestic students are defined as:

• No pre‑existing conditions – no limitations or exclusions.
• In‑network care – your plan pays 70% or more coverage of the usual, customary, and reasonable charge per accident or illness after the deductible is met.
• Out‑of‑network care – your plan pays 50 % or more coverage of the usual, customary, and reasonable charge per accident or illness after the deductible is met.
• Provider network radius – must be within an 80‑mile radius from the student’s home campus.
• Annual Deductible – $1,500 or less per calendar year unless you have the financial means to pay.
• Coverage scope – routine, diagnostic, urgent, and hospital care.
• Doctor office visits – for medical and mental‑health conditions.
• Hospital stays – for medical and surgical care, and for mental‑health conditions.
• Prescriptions – written by a doctor (coverage through a third‑party vendor such as Merck Medco, CVS Caremark, Express Scripts, etc. is acceptable).
• Diagnostic services – including laboratory tests.
• Recreational ‑ activity injury – services for injury from any recreational activity or sports (intercollegiate athletics excluded).
• Mental Health and Substance Abuse – out-patient and in-patient coverage.
• Maternity care – prenatal care and delivery with no pre‑existing‑condition limitations.
• International students – are required to purchase the school-sponsored plan with limited waiver opportunity providing proof of comparable coverage. The school sponsored plan includes repatriation of remains ($25,000+), and medical evacuation of exchange visitors to their home country ($50,000+).

PLEASE NOTE: Travel plans, County Medical Service Plans (CMSP), fixed indemnity plans, limited benefit plans, short-term plans, supplemental or reimbursement plans will not be accepted as comparable coverage.

UF Insurance “Quick Guide”

• Coverage for telehealth, urgent, or emergency care IS NOT sufficient. 
• Out of state HMO or EPO plans are ineligible, unless that plan covers beyond urgent and emergent care and includes the UF insurance requirements listed above.
• Florida HMO or EPO plans that DO NO offer Out-of-network coverage at 50% or better, DO NOT QUALIFY.
• Medicaid – Only students with Florida Medicaid may waive the university health insurance plan. Your Medicaid plan must include coverage of all the above to be accepted.

1. CLICK HERE to log in to the UF Student Self-Service Portal and start the waiver process.
2. Select comparable coverage questionnaire and complete the screening questionnaire.
3. After submitting, you’ll be taken to the insurance page. Click Add New and enter your insurance details.
4. Upload photos of the front and back of your insurance card.
5. Check your insurance status in the portal. Processing may take 3–5 business days (may take longer if the deadline is approaching).

1. CLICK HERE to log in to the UF Student Self-Service Portal.
2. Select “Insurance” from the menu. Look for the umbrella icon (located on the left sidebar on desktop, or the top-left menu button on mobile).
3. Click Renew and select the academic term.
4. Review your insurance details. Update card images only if needed.
5. Click Add to save.
6. Check your insurance status in the portal. It usually updates within 30–60 minutes (may take longer if the deadline is approaching).

All newly admitted or re-admitted domestic students who are enrolled at least half-time in a degree-seeking program are required to purchase the Student Health Insurance Plan unless proof of comparable coverage is provided. Proof of comparable coverage is provided annually.

All international students are required to purchase the school-sponsored plan with limited waiver opportunity providing proof of comparable coverage.

We understand that life can get extremely busy! That is why we utilize several tools to help remind you of upcoming deadlines.

Registration Hold
All students will have a self-clearing registration hold appear on their account. This is a one-time registration hold that requires that you review and acknowledge the mandatory health insurance requirement. Once you have read the information on the policy you will click a button acknowledging that you have read the information and the hold will clear immediately. While all students must clear this hold, the mandatory health insurance requirement may not apply depending on the student’s enrollment status (below half-time, distance learning, non-degree, etc.).

One.UF Reminders
Twice a year One.UF to-do items are placed as reminders for students to check their health insurance waiver status for the upcoming terms. These items are applied during Spring and Summer/Fall Advanced Registration. The to-do items are not registration holds. They are cleared when students click the button acknowledging that they have reviewed their health insurance status.

Pending Student Health Insurance Charges
If proof of health insurance is not submitted 30 days prior to deadline, the student health insurance premium will post to the student bursar account as a pending item. This will prompt charges notices from our office and the University Bursar. If a qualifying health insurance waiver is received prior to Fee Payment Deadline, the pending charge will be reversed.

Email Notices
Our office will send email notices when a health insurance waiver is about to expire, when charges have been posted as pending items, and when the waiver deadline is approaching. We will also send a final notice after the deadline has passed. Please make sure to check your student email address for important notifications from our office and other campus partners!

Students who do not submit a waiver by the deadline will be automatically enrolled in the UF sponsored plan for EVERY semester in which they are enrolled at least half-time and will be financially responsible for the related charge(s) on the student’s account.

To check your health insurance waiver status:

1. CLICK HERE to log in to the Student Self-Service Portal.
2. Click the “Insurance” tab in the menu (look for the umbrella icon ☂️).
3. Scroll down until you see your waiver submission. If it says “Verified” in green, your waiver is approved.

Check the “Expiration date of coverage” to see when your waiver expires. Waivers are active for 3 consecutive semesters, or approximately one year.

If your waiver does not say “Verified,” please allow 2–3 weeks for our office to review it.

⚠️ Important: Please do not submit more than one waiver. Sending multiple waivers will slow down the review process.

Submitting a waiver does not guarantee approval. Be sure to check your status after submitting.

Pending Review: No insurance company was selected. Check that you chose your insurance provider (if listed).

Pending Verification: Your coverage is being reviewed to confirm it meets requirements.

Verified: Your waiver is approved!

Verification Failed: The system couldn’t verify your plan automatically. Your waiver has been sent for manual review. You will receive an updated notification via email regarding your final waiver status.

Review Failed: Your plan could not be approved. Please confirm that your insurance information is correct and that your plan meets the coverage requirements. If everything looks correct, contact us. Without further action, you will be enrolled in the school plan.