Health Insurance & Financial Aid
All students at Duke are required to have adequate health insurance. Therefore, all students are automatically charged for the Duke Student Health Insurance (SMIP).
If you don't want the Duke insurance because you already have your own, or if you want Financial Aid to pay for your Duke insurance, you must submit the health insurance waiver request in DukeHub by Sept. 15! If you don't currently have insurance at all, please see the steps below.
Note: If you're a returning student and you received financial aid for your health insurance last year, you can go ahead and "enroll" each year. Your financial aid offer will automatically include grant aid to cover the cost.
If you currently have any form of health insurance, you must submit the waiver request in DukeHub by Sept. 15! If you don't currently have health insurance, you must email insurance@studentaffairs.duke.edu to let them know you're unable to complete the waiver.
If your waiver request is APPROVED, your Duke insurance charge will be removed from your bill.
If your waiver request is approved and Duke Student Health agrees that your current insurance is adequate, your charge for the Duke insurance will be removed from your bill.
You'll need to complete this process every year to prove you continue to have adequate insurance.
If your waiver request is DENIED, we'll increase your grant aid to cover your Duke insurance charge.
If your waiver request is denied, you'll be required to have the Duke insurance. If you have grant aid from Duke in your financial aid, we'll increase your grant aid to cover your insurance charge 100%. All students with Duke grant aid whose waivers have been denied, or who don't have any form of home insurance, will be enrolled in the Duke Student Health Insurance (SMIP) and given additional grant aid to cover the charge.
You won't need to complete this process in future years; we'll automatically roll your financial aid coverage for this forward.
"How do I submit the waiver request?"
Log into DukeHub and select “Forms and Requests”. You can view screenshots here.
DO NOT CLICK ENROLL (unless you are choosing Duke's insurance in addition to your own and are prepared to cover the full cost). If you click "enroll" without completing the waiver process, financial aid will not cover the cost of your insurance.
- If you do already have health insurance, select WAIVE and complete “My Current Insurance Plan or Policy”. Click "Submit for review" when done.
- If you don't already have health insurance, please email insurance@studentaffairs.duke.edu to let them know you're unable to complete the waiver.
If you do not complete the above steps by the deadline published by the Duke Student Health Insurance Office, you will be charged for the plan and the cost cannot be removed.
Additional Health Insurance Information
Contact the Duke Student Health insurance team at insurance@studentaffairs.duke.edu. You can visit their website here.
If you do not have any form of health insurance to report, please email insurance@studentaffairs.duke.edu to inform their office that you are unable to complete the waiver.
Yes!
We need the official denial of your waiver request in order to provide you the additional financial aid. Please go ahead and fill out the waiver request in DukeHub.
Yes!
All domestic students (US citizens, permanent residents, and undocumented students) who want financial aid to cover their health insurance charge must submit the waiver request. (International students receiving need-based aid automatically receive grant aid for their health insurance charge.)
If your waiver was APPROVED, then yes, you need to resubmit the request every year. You must show proof each year that you continue to have health insurance that meets the requirements of Duke Student Health.
If your waiver was DENIED and financial aid covered the cost for you, you don't need to continue to submit the waiver in future years. We assume you still need the Duke insurance, and we'll continue to pay for it for you as long as you're on financial aid.