PSHIP Insurance

Our new PSHIP plan is available to students enrolled in and participating in a defined program of study within one of the following schools: School of Public Health, School of Dentistry, School of Law, School of Medicine, School of Nursing, School of Pharmacy, or School of Social Work, and who is actively attending and/or participating in classes and/or their program study requirements. Please note: Students who are eligible for the Graduate Appointee Insurance Plan (GAIP) or the International Student Health Insurance Plan (ISHIP) are not eligible for PSHIP. 

This student health insurance plan is available to students and their dependents to help support your health and well-being while you’re in school. This plan is built to ensure students have reliable, comprehensive coverage while living and studying in a program sponsored by the University of Washington. Participation is optional, but action is required if you do not wish to be automatically enrolled in student-only PSHIP coverage and charged the student premium with your tuition and fees. 

If you’re eligible, you can either:

• Enroll in the plan: By not completing the opt-out form you will be automatically enrolled in UW PSHIP plan. You also have the ability to submit for dependent coverage below and pay the associated dependent premiums directly to Aetna Student Health.
• Choose to opt out! Opting out is easy, no verification of other coverage is required. You can opt-out simply because you don’t want to pay for the coverage or if you have access to other coverage. But ACTION IS REQUIRED TO OPT-OUT OF THE PLAN AND NOT PAY THE ASSOCIATED PREMIUMS

This page is meant to capture your wish to opt-out of the plan OR your wish to enroll dependents other than yourself on the plan with you. This page is also meant to help you understand your options and choose what’s best for you.

Step 1: Understand the UW Professional Student Health Insurance Plan

The UW PSHIP is designed specifically for students and their dependents and provides:

• Access to medical coverage through Aetna Student Health, including the Aetna Open Choice PPO network, nationwide provider access, telehealth services, doctor visits, prescriptions, hospital services, urgent care, mental health support, preventive care, and annual out-of-pocket limits for financial protection. Pediatric dental and vision coverage is also available for members up to age 19. 
• Students enrolled in PSHIP are encouraged to use Husky Health Center for visits and services, including preferred access to care through the Husky Health Center. 
• You may also enroll eligible dependents onto the plan with you – eligible dependents are; your legal dependent child (biological, adopted, custodial child) or your legal spouse
  • Premiums for dependents are owed directly to Aetna Student Health and can be paid for on the Aetna Student Health portal
  • Dependents may also utilize Husky Health Center, but certain eligibility criteria may apply. Contact HHC for questions about eligibility of non-students.

Coverage for the 2026-27 PSHIP plan is effective September 15, 2026 and runs through September 14, 2027.

• You can opt-out for the whole year on the opt-out website or you can opt-out for a quarter at a time.
• If you choose not to opt-out, you will be automatically enrolled in the program for each quarter you do not opt-out.
  • If your program start date is after 9/15 your premium will be prorated and your coverage will start on your program start date, your coverage will still end on 9/14 of the following year
• If you chose to opt out now and experience a qualifying life event you may be eligible to enroll in the plan at a later date in time. You may also drop coverage mid plan year if you experience a life event
  • Examples of Qualifying Life Events (QLE) are;
    • Birth, Placement or Adoption of a new eligible child dependent
    • Marriage or Divorce from a spouse
    • Gaining or losing coverage on another health plan
    • QLE requests can be sent to: uwpship@uw.edu
  • You have 31 days from the date of the event to notify the University of your wish to change your coverage. Your change in coverage will be effective on the day of the event. Example: you get married on October 15^th – you can add your spouse onto your insurance plan as of October 15^th. If you do not submit for a QLE within 31 days of the QLE you will not be allowed to make changes to your health plan enrollment
  • Your change in premium will be prorated and your additional premiums will be owed directly to Aetna. If you are removing a dependent and premiums are owed back to you, your refund will also come directly from Aetna.  

Step 2: Decide If You Want to Enroll or Opt Out

You have two choices:

Option 1: Enroll in the UW Professional Student Health Insurance Plan

You may want to enroll if:

• You do not currently have health insurance
  • Your current plan has limited coverage where you live or study
  • You want coverage that works locally AND nationally
  • You prefer predictable costs and access to the Husky Health Center health services

If you take no action, you will be enrolled by default into self-only coverage.

Option 2: Opt Out (Waive Coverage)

You may choose to opt out if you already have other health insurance that works for you or simply do not want to pay the premiums associated with your enrollment. Proof of other health coverage is not required to opt out of the plan and you are not required to enroll in the UW PSHIP plan to continue your course of study.

Step 3: Review the coverage and cost to enroll in the plan

The cost of coverage is due to the University of Washington after you enroll in the plan and will be collected at the same time you make your next tuition and fees payment. Please note the rate table below does not include the $200/year admin fee assessed by the University to administer the program. The $200 fee is charged once and only to the student enrolling.

	Annual	Fall	Winter	Spring	Summer
Start Date	9/15/2026	9/15/2026	1/1/2027	3/29/2027	6/21/2027
Term Date	9/14/2027	12/31/2026	3/28/2027	6/20/2027	9/14/2027
# of Days	365	108	87	84	86
Student, Spouse, Each Child (Cost Per Enrollee)	$5,411.00	$1,601.00	$1,290.00	$1,245.00	$1,275.00
Two or More Children Capped at Cost of Two Enrollees	$10,822.00	$3,202.00	$2,580.00	$2,490.00	$2,550.00

• Student-only coverage is $5,411 for annual enrollment. 
• Student plus one dependent (spouse or child) is $10,822 for annual coverage. 
• Student plus two dependents (spouse and one child, or two children) is $16,233 for annual coverage. 
• Student plus spouse and two or more children is $21,644 for annual coverage. 
• Student plus three children is $16,233 for annual coverage, reflecting the cap on child rates at two or more enrolled children. 

Student-only premiums are billed and collected with your tuition and fees due to the University of Washington. If you enroll eligible dependents, you must complete dependent enrollment and pay dependent premiums directly through Aetna Student Health. 

You may enroll eligible dependents, including your legal spouse and legal dependent children, through the Aetna Student Health portal. If you choose quarterly enrollment, dependents must be re-enrolled each quarter. The cost of enrolling dependents into the plan is illustrated above for your reference, but dependent premiums are paid directly to Aetna Student Health on the Aetna student health portal.

ENROLL AND PAY FOR DEPENDENT COVERAGE

Need Help Deciding? Choosing health insurance can feel overwhelming—it’s okay to take your time. You may want to;

• Compare your current plan to the UW plan benefits – review the Summary of Benefits and Coverage document from Aetna Student Health
• Think about where you’ll receive care while at school – search for providers and review Aetna network information  
• Review the FAQs on this webpage and the available information on the Aetna Student Health website. If you still have questions – please reach out to the PSHIP admin team at uwpship@uw.edu

Step 4: Submit Your Decision to opt out OR enter your dependent coverage information if you want to enroll your family members onto the plan with you

• If You Want to Opt Out: You can submit your waiver directly at this website – PSHIP.uw.edu  
• If you want to enroll dependents onto the plan with you;  You will do so directly on the Aetna Student Health portal – you will need your dependents personal information (name, DOB, SSN, etc.) to enroll them and pay Aetna Student Health direclty for your dependent coverage premiums
• Please note : if you do not opt-out of the plan and you do not enter any dependent enrollment information you will be automatically enrolled in coverage for yourself only and owe the student only premiums to the University of Washington.

Important Deadlines!

For fall quarter 2026, you must submit your opt-out waiver by October 16, 2026. For future quarters, opt-out timing aligns to the applicable tuition and fees due date for that quarter. After that, changes are only allowed if you experience a qualifying life event (for example, gaining or losing coverage).

If you do not submit a waiver by your quarterly tuition due date deadline, you will be enrolled in the UW PSHIP plan.

PSHIP ENROLLMENT FAQ

LEAVE OF ABSENCE (LOA) FAQ