SHIP Waiver Request

Insurance Options

Key points

  • Each enrolled school year, DU students must 1) accept DU SHIP or 2) request a waiver online by posted deadlines.
  • Insurance decision (accept SHIP or request waiver) opens each fall by August 1st, but is not available until after student registers for classes. The decision window is open for several weeks.
  • Waiver-eligible plans must meet all adequate coverage requirements below. 
  • Check expandable headers below for example documents and additional details.
  • SHIP is automatically billed to central DU Student Billing account, unless and until a waiver is approved.
  • We manually process waiver requests in the order submitted. This is not an automated or instantaneous process.
  • If approved, waiver adjustments are typically reflected on your DU billing statement within 7-10 business days.
  • If your bill is due before your waiver has been processed, you may deduct the $2,200 Student Health Insurance premium from your DU Student Billing payment account. (Pay other charges in the meanwhile.)
  • Students receive multiple direct communications and reminders about options, process, and deadlines. Failure to read or act is not grounds for (late) waiver.

As explained on our insurance overview page, all students are required to participate in the DU Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP) unless they provide proof of adequate alternate health insurance and submit a SHIP waiver request by posted deadlines each year. 

This requirement is communicated multiple times in multiple ways, including through email and MyHealth secure messages from the HCC, emails from Student Billing, a post on the DU Family Experience online portal, a summer hardcopy mailing to incoming students, and for incoming undergraduates, the DU Bound enewsletters and required Discoveries online modules. 

SHIP billing does not occur, and therefore waiver process in not available, until a student registers for classes for the relevant academic term. The waiver request can only be filed online (instructions below), and must be submitted by the applicable waiver deadline.

 
The 2026-27 SHIP acceptance/waiver request process for Quarter students is open.
Annual waiver request DEADLINES are:

Quarter students: 9/25/2026                  Semester/Law students: 9/04/2026 (now closed)

Please note that waiver decisions are not instantaneous; and, if approved, waiver credit can take up to 5 business days to apply to your DU Student Billing account. (You should still pay other charges while waiver request processes.)

Please review details below, and contact the HCC at 303-871-2205 or insurance@du.edu with additional questions.

Alternate Coverage Requirements

The following are based on minimum requirements of student health insurance plans under healthcare law, American College Health Association (ACHA) Standards for Student Health Insurance Plans, benchmarked subsidized plans available in the health insurance marketplace, and our experience in serving DU students. 

New school year health insurance coverage submitted for review must be in effect as of August 1 for Law (semester) Students and September 1 for Quarter Students.

Additionally, alternative plans must:

  • have in-network non-emergency care providers in the Denver area.
  • meet the essential coverage as defined under the Affordable Care Act (ACA)
    • Emergency and non-emergency medical care
    • Inpatient and outpatient hospitalization
    • Covers mental health as any other illness
    • Preventative care covered at 100% with no cost to the insured
    • Covers pre-existing conditions
    • Covers prescriptions
    • Provides a US IRS 1095 B or C form indicating that you met the mandate for continuous coverage.
  • be US-filed and approved ACA-compliant plan.
    • International, travel, and short-term limited benefits and/or coverage plans are not accepted.
    • A number of health insurance plans marketed solely to international students are often not filed in the US and have limited benefits and/or coverage periods that do not meet the DU SHIP waiver requirements.

 

Out-of-state (non-Colorado) Medicaid and most HMO plans do not provide out-of-network coverage. As they typically cover only urgent or emergency care, these plans do not meet the SHIP waiver requirements.

 

Benefits provided by DU's comprehensive Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP) exceed the minimum requirements for student health insurance plans under healthcare law.

 

  • Waiver Request Instructions
    ***The 2026-27 SHIP Waiver Request process for Quarter students is open.***
    (Semester/Law fall process has closed.)

     

    The following steps only apply during open waiver request periods.

    NOTE: Student must be registered for classes before the online systems will offer relevant SHIP decision options, as some details are based on enrollment status.

    Be sure to have your alternate coverage information handy, including images of your insurance card, as you will be required to submit your insurance plan details for verification.

    Please contact the HCC at 303-871-2205 or insurance@du.edu if you have questions.

     

    After you have registered for classes, sign in to MyDU and select the following options:

    1. Student Resources
    2. Records and Requests
    3. Accept or Waive Health Insurance.

    The online system will then offer applicable options.
     

    To confirm your alternative coverage is adequate, you will be asked to affirm the following questions:

    1. Does your plan have in-network non-emergency care providers in the Denver area?
    2. Does your plan meet essential coverage as defined under the federal Affordable Care Act (ACA)? This includes:
      • Emergency and non-emergency medical care
      • Inpatient and outpatient hospitalization
      • Plan covers mental health as any other illness
      • Preventive care covered at 100% with no cost to the insured
      • Plan covers pre-existing conditions
      • Plan covers prescriptions
      • Plan provides a US IRS 1095 B or C form indicating that you met the mandate for continuous coverage

     

    So that we can verify the coverage, you must provide the following information about your insurance plan:

    • Insurance Company Name
    • Insurance Member ID
    • Insurance Group Number
    • Insurance policy holder First Name
    • Insurance policy holder Last Name
    • Student's Date of Birth
    • Policy Holder Relationship to Student
    • You will need to upload images of the front and back of your insurance ID card, OR other proof of coverage (eg full Insurance Certificate, available from your plan website/member services).

     

    An email confirmation will be sent to student within 48 hours. Keep a copy of the confirmation for your records.

    The waiver decision is not instantaneous; the student will receive email updates as the request is being processed.

    The SHIP premium is billed to all eligible students' central DU Student Billing account, and then removed/credited if waiver is approved. If approved, waivers can take up to 5 business days to apply to your DU Student Billing account.  

    If an eligible student does not submit a waiver request by the deadline EACH SCHOOL YEAR, the charge for DU SHIP will remain on their Student Billing Account. 

    Failure to read messages and/or to act is not grounds for (late) waiver.

  • Examples of acceptable coverage documents

    Examples of documents that allow us to more quickly verify alternative coverage include:

    • CBID cards for BIA IHS-covered students

     

    Submitting these does not guarantee a waiver; and, we may need to follow-up with additional questions. But these specific submission greatly help the review.

  • Common waiver request issues

    To approve a SHIP waiver, we must be able to confirm that the student has currently active insurance that meets the alternative coverage requirements above. 

    These are some of the most common reasons that prevent us from confirming coverage, and thus approving waivers:

    • Data entry errors on the web form:
      • Name of insurance subscriber (the actual policy owner/payor, often a parent) and student are swapped.
      • Relationship to subscriber
        • should be Self if is student's own plan (also for Colorado Medicaid plans)
        • should be Child if the insurance is provided by the parents
      • Please use student "Member ID" as the "Policy Number."
      • Month and day reversed. In the US, the month is entered first, followed by the day: MM-DD-YEAR
    • Image of something other than an insurance ID card is submitted. 
      • Government ID, prescription discount cards, and other images (insurance company logos, kayaks, cats) don't provide the needed confirmation of current, adequate medical insurance.
    • Image of insurance ID is blurry or unclear. Please make sure your lens is clean, lighting is good, and all information on the card is readable.

     

    Even with clear submissions, we sometimes need additional information. Our most common follow-ups are to verify that: 

    1. the student is covered by the submitted policy (if the policy is, for example, in parent's name), 
    2. the coverage is in effect as of required date (8/1 for Law, 9/1 for quarter students), and/or 
    3. the policy covers non-emergency care in Denver (many out-of-Colorado HMO plans do not).

     

    In these cases, we may request additional information, such as letter of coverage from the insurance company (naming student as insured and for what dates), or a copy of a matching policy document (such as Summary of Benefits) to demonstrate the required coverage details. You can request these from the insurer member services (phone number on your insurance card), and/or can often find/download/request them on your plan's website.

     

    In all cases where a waiver is denied, the student will receive a Secure Message through the DU MyHealth portal explaining why we were not able to approve the request. The student can reply with requested information, or contact the HCC to reset the waiver portal for a new submission.

    We’ll also send waiver approval notifications via MyHealth. (And it may take several business days after approval for the premium to be credited from your central Student Billing account.)

    Students’ @du email account will receive a notice to check your MyHealth whenever new messages are sent. Don’t wait to check MyHealth messages, and respond promptly when needed!

  • While awaiting waiver request decision....

    Once you have submitted your waiver request, please note:

    • The waiver decision is not instantaneous; please allow 5-7 business days, as our staff review thousands of requests. The student will receive email updates and/or a decision (approved or not) as your request is processed.
    • All eligible students are billed for SHIP by default, appearing on your central Student Billing account. The charge will be reversed if/once your waiver request is approved. This is also not instantaneous, and so may take several business days.
    • You should pay all other central Student Billing charges while awaiting your SHIP waiver decision, and/or contact Student Billing with billing questions, for payment plan info, etc.
    • You can check the general status of your waiver request via the myHealth portal. Select Insurance Decision from left menu, and status will be shown: none submitted, submitted/processing, etc.
  • Make a mistake? Or change your mind?

    If you waived OR accepted the SHIP by mistake, please contact us before the applicable waiver deadline at 303-871-2205 or insurance@du.edu 

    After the applicable deadline, students who waived SHIP on an annual basis will not be able to opt back into SHIP during the academic year unless they experience a qualifying loss of other coverage. (See our "Off-term enrollment" section on SHIP page.)