Health Insurance

The New School's Aetna Student Health Insurance Plan plays a vital role in fulfilling the university's commitment to student health and well-being. The SHIP provides comprehensive coverage for preventive and routine care, injury and illness, urgent and emergency services, hospitalization and diagnostics, mental health and substance use care, gender-affirming care, prescriptions, and specialty and nationwide provider access, as well as dental care, vision care, wellness resources, and travel assistance.

The student health insurance plan is available to:

• Degree students (including online-only students)
• Visiting and mobility (study abroad) students
• Maintenance-of-status students
• ESL+ certificate students
• Graduate credit certificate students
• Undergraduate and graduate non-matriculating students enrolled in credit-bearing courses 
  

Students enrolled in Continuing and Professional Education are not eligible and are not charged for the health plan.

How Student Health Insurance Works

• All students must have health insurance that provides comprehensive coverage where they are located. Insurance can be U.S.-based or international; it does not need to be ACA-compliant. 
• All eligible students are charged for student health insurance automatically upon registration but must submit an enrollment form to be enrolled in the SHIP.
• We recommend submitting the enrollment form at least two weeks before the date coverage begins, to ensure that your member ID card is available when coverage begins.
• Fall coverage continues automatically in the spring semester, provided you are registered for spring classes. Delays with spring registration can delay spring health insurance enrollment.
• Students with their own health insurance coverage must submit a waiver form if they do not wish to be enrolled in the plan.
• Students need to submit a waiver form once every academic year. Waivers submitted in the fall apply to both the fall and the spring semesters.
• If no action is taken, students are enrolled by default in the student health insurance plan after the waiver deadline and are responsible for the health insurance fee.
  

2026–2027 Health Insurance Plan

• For the 2026–2027 academic year, The New School will continue to partner with Aetna Student Health to provide student health insurance coverage. 
• Enrollment and waiver forms will be available at universityhealthplans.com/tns beginning April 28, 2026. 
• The waiver deadline is September 8, 2026. All new and continuing students with their own insurance coverage must submit a waiver form by that date.
• The annual premium and summary of benefits will be posted once the final review is completed by New York State.

2025–2026 Health Insurance Plan

• The annual premium is $4,310, which is divided into two payments:
  • Fall 2025 premium: $1,748 (coverage period August 20, 2025, through January 14, 2026).
  • Spring 2026 premium: $2,562 (coverage period January 15 through August 19, 2026).
• Health insurance provider: Aetna Student Health, which administers the insurance plan and pays the claims.
  
• Plan type: Aetna Open Choice PPO.
• Broker: University Health Plans, which handles enrollment and waivers, including dependent and OPT enrollment. 
• Health insurance card: View or print on the Aetna Student Health website.
• Dental and vision benefits are included for all enrolled students.
• The fall 2025 waiver deadline was September 30, 2025 (extended from September 9). The spring 2026 waiver deadline was February 28, 2026 (extended from February 3).
  

Medical benefits:

• Aetna Student Health Summary of Benefits and Coverage
• Aetna Student Health Insurance Plan brochure—English  
• Aetna Student Health Plan brochure—Korean
• Aetna Student Health Plan brochure—Chinese

Dental benefits:

• Dental Benefits brochure
• How to Use Your Dental Benefits

Vision benefits:

• Vision Benefits brochure
• How to Use Your Vision Benefits