Comparable Criteria

Lewis & Clark College requires that all degree seeking, and visiting, Undergraduate and Law students have medical insurance coverage comparable to that offered through the school’s comprehensive Student Health Insurance Plan. Students enrolled in the Academic English Studies program also are held to this insurance requirement. 

Private insurance coverage is considered comparable to the school’s if:

• The plan offers a policy maximum of at least $500,000 in coverage per year.

• The plan provides access to health care providers in the geographic area where you will be studying for emergency and non-emergency conditions. For most students, this geographic area will be the greater Portland area, but for students studying abroad, this refers to the country in which you will be studying. (Note: Plans that provide benefits only for emergency and/or urgent care do not satisfy this criteria.  Likewise, if you will be studying in Portland, have an HMO, and the Portland area is out-of-network, your coverage doesn’t meet this criteria.  If your HMO offers guest privileges in the Portland area, you can potentially meet this criteria by obtaining guest privileges.  You must contact your insurer to receive guest privileges prior to waiving coverage.)

• The plan covers inpatient and outpatient mental health care within the Portland area (for students studying in Portland) or in the country in which you will be studying (for students on both international and domestic overseas programs). (Emergency only coverage does not satisfy this requirement.)

• The plan is currently active and you agree to maintain health insurance coverage throughout the entire academic year. 

• What LC Families with Kaiser HMO Need to Know

For parents and guardians:  One of the waiver criteria is that my student’s insurance must provide for medically necessary care where my student is studying (e.g. Portland).   How can I be sure that it does, and that my insurance is adequate for my student’s health and my own peace of mind? 

It’s important to know exactly what your health plan covers, and what’s excluded.  If you don’t know the answers to the following questions, we encourage you to ask them specifically to your insurance company.   If your health insurance won’t cover these services for your student, you should think about enrolling your student in the college’s student health insurance plan.

Ask your health insurance provider the following questions:

1. Does my insurance plan allow access for my student to a broad variety of medical and mental health services in Portland (or where the student will be studying outside of Portland)?  Or does my plan restrict coverage to only emergency care?
2. If there are restrictions on what provider my student can access, where will my student have to go for off-campus care?  This is especially important to explore if you have HMO (health maintenance organization) coverage.  Must your student use preferred providers, or participating providers? It is important to consider how accessible the providers or facilities are to the campus.  How long will it take to get to the office?   
3. Does my insurance cover diagnostic laboratory work and diagnostic imaging ( i.e. X-ray or CT scan) performed in Portland (or where the student will be studying outside of Portland)?
4. Does my insurance cover hospitalizations in Portland (or where the student will be studying outside of Portland)?   
5. Does my coverage provide for specialty care (e.g., orthopedics, cardiology, etc.) in Portland (or where the student will be studying outside of Portland)?