Waiving SHIP

The Spring 2021 Waiver period is closed

  Important Spring 2021 Information about Waiving SHIP

Please read through the important information regarding SHIP waiver in order to assist you in successfully submitting your waiver for the semester. 

Waiver Period

The Spring 2021 waiver period is December 1, 2020 to January 1, 2021. All waivers received between January 2, 2021 and January 15, 2021 will be subject to a late fee of $75. Absolutely no waiver applications will be accepted after January 15, 2021.

Given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, here is some information about the process for waiving SHIP for international students and medi-cal recipients:

International Students

If you are an international student wanting to waive SHIP because you are staying in your home country:

  • You will still need to complete an online waiver application with your current insurance plan or healthcare coverage by the waiver deadline (National healthcare is accepted if you are staying in your home country).
  • Your address, phone number, and gender are fields that cannot be edited in the application and will not affect your waiver if incorrect.
  • We understand your home country's insurance plan is not listed, please manually add it to the list.

  • If your waiver application is denied, submit a waiver appeal stating that you are staying in your home country and studying remotely.

  • Please make sure your current address is up to date in your CalCentral profile. CalCentral allows international addresses.

  • A letter from your department may be requested for confirmation.

Medi-Cal Recipients

If you are a Medi-Cal recipient who is staying outside of the approved counties:

  • You will still need to complete an online waiver application with your current insurance plan by the waiver deadline. 
  • Your address, phone number, and gender are fields that cannot be edited in the application and will not affect your waiver if incorrect.

  • When your waiver application is denied, submit a waiver appeal stating that you are staying in your home county and studying remotely.

  • Your current address must be reflected in CalCentral.
  • A letter from your department may be requested as confirmation.

If you are a Medi-Cal recipient who has decided to study remotely, but on campus:

  • You will still need to complete an online waiver application with your current insurance plan by the waiver deadline.
  • Your address, phone number, and gender are fields that cannot be edited in the application and will not affect your waiver if incorrect.
  • When your waiver application is denied, submit a waiver appeal stating that you are transferring your coverage to Berkeley. Your coverage must be fully transferred to a county within 50 miles of UC Berkeley and you must have a local insurance card with your primary care physician listed. Please keep the SHIP office updated with your status and your new insurance card must be submitted through the eTang patient portal by February 1, 2021. 
  • Your current address must be reflected in CalCentral.
  • A letter from your department may be requested as confirmation.

Financial Aid

To check if SHIP is covered in your financial aid package, undergraduates should check with Cal Student Central on the status or the timing of when Financial Aid will know this information.

Special Programs

Incoming students in the following programs:

  • Master of Public Affairs (MPA)
  • Masters of Arts in Teaching (MAT)
    • Principle Leadership Institue (PLI) 
    • Berkeley Educators for Equity and Excellence (BE3)
  • Master of Financial Engineering (MFE) - incoming March class only
  • 11-month Master of Public Health (MPH)

See the Special Programs waiver instructions and waiver application.

Waiver Exclusions

Master of Information and Data Science (MIDS) excluded, except for 5th year MIDS students who may keep SHIP or waive enrollment.

For more information, please call the Student Health Insurance Office at (510) 642-5700, email your questions to ship@berkeley.edu, or currently enrolled students can send a secure message to the SHIO office via the eTang patient portal.

Waiver Resources

Forms and Worksheets

Resources

Waiver Appeal

If you have submitted your online waiver and it was denied, you may submit a waiver appeal if you believe your insurance does meet the criteria. Your appeal must be submitted within 10 business days from your denial date in order for your waiver to be considered. You must have already completed the online waiver and received a denial to use this form. 

To securely submit your SHIP Waiver Appeal, log in to the eTang patient portal with your Calnet ID and passphrase.

From the welcome page, click "MESSAGES" on the left side menu. Click "New Message". If this is your first time using the eTang patient portal, you will need to complete the compliance forms before proceeding to the appeal form. Please go to the home page and click on "Medical Clearances" on the left to complete any necessary clearances and then follow the rest of the instructions. Under "Student Health Insurance Office (SHIO)", select "Request Student Insurance Plan (SHIP) Waiver Forms" and select "SHIP Appeal Form". Fill out the form completely and click the "Send" button.

If you do not receive a response to your appeal within 30 days, please contact the insurance office at (510) 642-5700 or ship@berkeley.edu. Please note, you may be contacted via secure message in the eTang patient portal if additional documentation is needed to process your appeal.

Waiver Reversal

If you have waived SHIP enrollment for this semester and wish to reverse your waiver, please follow the instructions below.

Log in to the eTang patient portal with your Calnet ID and passphrase.

From the welcome page, click "MESSAGES" on the left side menu. Click "New Message". If this is your first time using the eTang patient portal, you will need to complete the compliance forms before proceeding to the waiver reversal form. Please go to the home page and click on "Medical Clearances" on the left to complete any necessary consents and then follow the rest of the instructions. Under "Student Health Insurance Office (SHIO)", select "Request Student Insurance Plan (SHIP) Waiver Forms". Select "SHIP Waiver REVERSAL Form". Fill out the form completely and click the "Send" button. 

You may be asked for verification from your former insurance company stating the date your coverage ended.

Please call the Student Health Insurance Office at (510) 642-5700, email your questions to ship@berkeley.edu, or, currently enrolled students can send a secure message to the SHIP office via the eTang patient portal.

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