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Student Health and Dental Insurance

According to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and Lesley University policy, all undergraduate students registered for 9 credits or more, including programs at the DeMello International Center, must be covered by a comprehensive health insurance program.

Also, any on-campus graduate students registered for 6 credits or more, including programs at the DeMello International Center, must be covered by a comprehensive health insurance program.

Lesley has a general health insurance program available, which meets the standards of the Commonwealth as well as those put forth in the national Affordable Care Act.

This policy is provided by Blue Cross Blue Shield and administered by Gallagher Student Health and Special Risk. The current year's annual coverage begins on August 15, 2023, and continues through August 14, 2024.

Health insurance requirements for on-campus international, online, off-campus, and low-residency students:

  • On-Campus International Students

    All on-campus international students must enroll in the Blue Cross Blue Shield plan with the exception of:

    • Those international students whose sponsoring institution has a signed agreement with Lesley University that complies with the health insurance waiver requirements.
    • International students with a plan for which their health insurance company’s primary home office is based in the United States, and the policy provides comparable coverage to the university student health insurance plan.


    International students who qualify to waive the insurance based on the information above must go to gallagherstudent.com/lesley to waive the insurance charge. All other international students are required to enroll in the health insurance plan and are not eligible for a waiver.

  • Online, Off-Campus, and Low-Residency Students

    If you’re enrolled in an online program in Massachusetts (regardless of your state of residency), in a program that’s delivered at an off-campus location, or in a program delivered in a low-residency format, you’re not eligible to participate in the Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP) or an alternate health plan.

Full-Time or Three-Quarter-Time Student Status

Full-time or three-quarter-time status is based on registered credits, not classes, and your status for the semester will be determined as of the last date of the add/drop period. If you’re in a campus-based program and are taking the following number of credits, you’ll be required to participate in the health insurance enrollment or waiver process.

  • Undergraduate Students
    • Full-time status: Taking 12–18 credits per semester
    • Three-quarter-time status: Taking 9–11.5 credits per semester
  • Graduate and Doctoral Students
    • Full-time status: Taking 9 or more credits per semester
    • Half-time status: Taking 6 or more credits per semester

Health Insurance Waiver or Enrollment Process

How to submit a Health Insurance Decision form:

  1. Go to gallagherstudent.com/lesley.
  2. Under "Profile", enter your email address and click "Log In".
  3. First Time Users: Gallagher Student Health will send an email to your student email account with a temporary password. Click on the link in the email and insert the temporary password. (If you did not receive a temporary password, choose ‘Forgot your password?’ on the login page).
  4. Complete the Health Insurance Decision Form.

You’ll immediately receive a reference number confirming that you submitted the form. If you waived the Student Blue Plan, the charge for it will be removed from your Lesley Student Account within 3-5 days.

The deadline for the current year is August 1, 2023. If you do not submit a form by this deadline, you will be assessed a student account hold and late payment fee. You will be enrolled for the entire year if you do not waive this insurance.

Qualifying Health Plans for a Waiver

If you intend to waive the student health insurance offered by the university and use your own health insurance, the company must be a U.S.-based carrier.

  • Qualifying Health Plans
    • Being a U.S.-based carrier means that the insurance carrier issuing the plan is a U.S. or domestic company, regardless of where the policy is purchased or where the claims are processed.
       
    • Carriers outside of the U.S. are foreign or foreign-based insurance companies (for example, non-domestic or non-U.S. companies), including those companies with satellite offices in the United States.
       
    • Some foreign insurance companies have numerous companies and subsidiaries worldwide. A foreign carrier may have a U.S. subsidiary, as well as subsidiaries in other countries.
       
    • Policies purchased from the U.S. subsidiary qualify for a waiver, but policies purchased from foreign subsidiaries do not qualify for a waiver (unless the foreign study abroad exception applies).
       
    • Those international students whose sponsoring institutions have a signed agreement with Lesley University that complies with the university’s health insurance waiver requirements, or international students with a plan for which their health insurance company’s primary home office is based in the United States and the policy provides comparable coverage to the University Student Health Insurance Plan are eligible to waive. Travel insurance plans and short-term limited duration plans are not comparable.

Dates of Coverage, Rates, and Policies: 2023–2024

The Lesley-sponsored Student Health Insurance Plan covers you during semester breaks, summer vacation, and even while you're studying abroad. You'll be covered for the period for which you paid the premium.

  • Coverage Dates and Rates: 2023–2024
    Premium Period Dates of Coverage Rates:
    Undergraduate
    Rates: Graduate
    or Doctoral
    Entire Academic Year
    (Fall Start)
    Aug. 15 this year to Aug. 14 next year $3,625 $7,533
    Spring Semester Only Jan. 1 to Aug. 14 $2,114 $4,394
  • Policies Pertaining to Coverage
    • Undergraduate students must actively attend classes, at the enrollment of 9 or more credits, for at least the first 31 days after the date for which coverage is purchased.
       
    • Graduate students must actively attend classes, at the enrollment of 6 or more credits, for at least the first 31 days after the date for which coverage is purchased.
       
    • The University maintains its right to investigate the student status and attendance records to verify that the policy of eligibility requirements have been met.
       
    • If the University discovers that the policy of eligibility requirements have not been met, its only obligation is a refund of the premium.
  • Benefits and Service Questions

    For general information on insurance plan benefits or service issues, please contact the provider directly:

    Gallagher Student Health and Special Risk
    500 Victory Road
    Quincy, MA 02171
    Phone: 800.401.6068

  • Change of Address

    If you need to change your address with the health insurance provider, please submit a case to the Support Hub—providing your current address—and request we update it with Gallagher.

Dental Insurance

Lesley University offers these options for students who wish to enroll in dental insurance.

  • Dental Blue

    Dental Blue is available to all students. You do not need to be enrolled in the Student Health Insurance Plan. It is your choice to enroll.

    To review the Dental Blue plan description and enroll, visit www.gallagherstudent.com/lesley and under "Student Access" click "Other Products" and then "Dental Enrollment Form".

    Complete the enrollment form and submit payment.

    Annual or spring/summer coverage is available but deadlines apply. Please review Gallagher's website for more details.

  • Dental Savings Program

    The Dental Savings Program is an exclusive plan for students enrolled in the Lesley-sponsored Student Health Insurance Plan. The program was developed by Basix, LLC to provide students access to general and specialty dental care from a select network of local dentists. The providers in this network have met strict requirements for credentialing and quality assurance and have agreed to accept negotiated prices for the services they provide.

    How the Dental Savings Program Works

    • At your dental visit, you would be responsible for paying for the services you receive.
       
    • Save about 50% off charges for a range of dental services, from routine cleanings to root canals.
       
    • This is not an insurance plan, so there are no claim forms, annual maximums, benefit limitations, and condition or other plan provisions.
       
    • Visit Basix Student to locate participating dental providers and learn about their fee schedules.
  • Student Dental Plan with Boston University

    The Boston University School of Dental Medicine offers a Student Dental Plan to Lesley University students. This plan includes low-cost, high-quality care for students' basic dental needs such as cleanings and fillings.

Finding Alternate Health Insurance

If you wish to find an alternate health insurance plan, try these resources: