Seminarian Health Insurance

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America requires any student registered for 8 or more hours in a semester to be enrolled in the national seminarian health insurance plan to which all the seminaries of the church subscribe. The plan provides two different coverage options for major medical and accident coverage, which begins each school year on September 1 and continues through August 31 of the following year. Enrollment in the basic plan is automatic and mandatory for all students except those completing a waiver by September 30.

Students are waiver eligible if they have coverage by one of the following:

1. Employer-provided group health insurance from self, spouse or parents.
2. Individual coverage with an annual deductible of less than $2,500.
3. Student’s former employer coverage (COBRA).
4. Federal or state-funded plans.

Those students eligible to waive the mandatory coverage must provide proof of coverage by the other provider. The cost of the insurance premium for an individual seminarian is expected to be $2,412 for the basic plan and $3,108 for the enhanced plan during the 2009-10 academic year.

The estimated spousal premium for 2009-10 is between $2,313 for the basic plan and $2,965 for the enhanced plan; the estimated charge for children for 2009-10 is $1,447 for the basic plan and $2,070 for the enhanced plan, regardless of the number of children. Specific details of the national seminarian health insurance plan are available on request from the Business Office or at www.eiiassip.org.

The seminary also contracts with Capital University to provide medical and health care to seminarians. Capital University’s Kline Clinic, where the staff includes a physician and several registered nurses, is open during the day from September to June, except for vacation periods. It is equipped to handle both routine and emergency cases.