Alumni Association offers graduates health insurance

Short Term Medical Plan will help graduates in transition from school to career

By BELKI MONTEJO
Staff Writer

With graduation completed, thousands of USC's newest alumni must now turn their attention to responsibilities such as job interviews, apartment-hunting and - yes - personal insurance.
Many graduates do not realize their parents' health insurance will often not cover them once they graduate, said Danielle Hinsche, director of membership for the Alumni Association.
That is why the Alumni Association is offering a short-term health insurance plan for USC alumni and students.
The Short Term Medical Plan is a 12-month plan created to protect against gaps in medical coverage. It is available to USC alumni, their spouses and dependent children for up to three 12-month segments.
The health plan the Alumni Association is offering is designed to provide coverage for hospitalization, surgery and outpatient treatment.
The Alumni Association chose to offer their plans through Albert H. Wohlers & Co. after extensive research for good health insurance, Hinsche said.
"Albert H. Wohlers is an A-rated company with great insurance benefits," Hinsche said.
Hinsche said the Short Term Medical Plan targets recent graduates because they know how difficult it is to get good health coverage, but it is also available to any student who has an interest in the program.
"It is very affordable, that is what the Alumni Association wanted," Hinsche said.
The USC Alumni Association offers two insurance plans, Allianz and Fortis, depending on the state in which the customer lives. In the Allianz plan, which applies to California residents:
€ Members pay a $250 deductible per coverage period; the premium varies depending on age, residence and sex.
€ After the deductible is met, the plan pays 80 percent of the $5,000 of eligible expenses and members pay the remaining 20 percent.
€ The plan then pays up to 100 percent of the remaining covered expenses.
Some students said they are wary of a smaller company such as Wohlers & Co. that is unfamiliar to them.
"I wouldn't be interested because my insurance should be stable; I don't like something short-term," said Moham-mad Elfarra, who graduated with a major in exercise science.
Elfarra, 21, said he will be covered by his parents' insurance until he is 24 and will then continue to get insurance from Blue Cross.
"If your health is what it is, you have the same risks and will get pretty much the same (health) plan," Elfarra said. "I have been with Blue Cross since I was born and I wouldn't change it," he said.
Dwayne Miller, a senior majoring in computer science, said he is not worried about insurance for when he graduates.
"Unless you don't have a job when you graduate then probably you would look into (medical insurance), but I'll have a job with health benefits," Miller said.
Hinsche said customers could purchase the Short Term Medical Plan and just pay for the time they use it if they find a job with health benefits.
Many students have not heard about this plan that began in spring 1998, and the overall response was low. But this year the Alumni Association is expecting more graduates to sign up.
"We're mailing a letter to graduates in August and we made the seniors aware of it at the Salute to the class," Hinsche said.
Interested graduates can call Albert H. Wohlers & Co. at (888) 560-2586 for more information.
The Short Term Medical Plan is not offered in Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York or Vermont.