Athletic Training - Insurance Information

Athlete Training Services | Staff
Medical Forms | Insurance Information
Visiting Team Information | Emergency Plan/Procedures (pdf)

NEW AND RETURNING Student-Athletes must complete:
Insurance Information Form (pdf)

SUNYIT requires all students, athletes as well as non-athletes, to have medical insurance. Therefore, EACH semester you are billed and enrolled for the SUNYIT Student Health Plan (SHP). If you already have medical insurance coverage (i.e. under a parent, employer, etc.) and do not want the medical insurance offered by SUNYIT, you will need to waive the medical insurance on-line EACH semester. The SHP will help defray the high cost of health care. It is NOT a comprehensive plan and has benefit limits. For more information about the SHP please visit www.sunyit.edu/health_wellness/, or call the Health & Wellness Center at (315) 792-7172 for more details.

Student-athletes are also covered under the athletic department’s policy as a secondary medical insurance policy. It has a deductible of $3,500 and covers up to $90,000. This means that you are responsible for the first $3,500 which may be met through your private insurance company or out-of- pocket. If your bills exceed $90,000, the NCAA has a catastrophic insurance plan that will consider payment upon meeting the $90,000. It is important to understand that regardless of what insurance you have, there is never guarantee of payment and that there may be some “out-of-pocket” expenses (i.e. durable medical equipment, co-pays, etc.).

Private Insurance Carriers
Any injury that occurs while playing at SUNYIT will be processed under your own personal private insurance.  To maximize your benefits, you will need to contact your insurance company and ask what type of coverage your son/daughter will have while away at college. This will help in the decision of whether to waive the SHP.

SUNYIT offers those with private medical insurance the ability to waive the SHP. If you waive the SHP, you will be left with just your private insurance to cover any injuries. If you choose not to waive the SHP, this will act as a secondary insurance to your primary insurance. Please note that if you have an HMO plan or a NY State funded insurance plan (i.e. Medicaid, Fidelis, etc.) that those insurances usually do not pay for “out-of-network” costs. Most often you will not be able to utilize any physicians in this area unless you change your Primary Care Physician.

Students that have private medical insurance-Examples:
Ex: Student-Athlete A has private insurance and has waived the SHP. Student A gets injured during a soccer game and has medical expenses related to the injury. Those expenses are submitted to Student-Athlete A’s private insurance for coverage.  The total cost of this injury was $4,000 but Student-Athlete A’s insurance only paid $3000. It is the responsibility for Student-Athlete A to pay the remaining $500 before anything will be submitted to the athletic policy. (Remember that $3500 must be met first BEFORE the SUNYIT’s athletic department insurance will consider payment).

Ex: Student-Athlete B has private insurance and had decided to keep the SHP. In the same scenario as above, Student-Athlete B’s insurance pays $3000. Student-Athlete B brings in the Explanation of Benefits (EOB) from his private insurance carrier explaining what the private insurance has paid. Student-Athlete B’s EOB is submitted to the SHP for consideration of payment for the remaining $500. Assuming that the SHP pays the $500, the remaining $500.00 can now be processed under the athletics policy. *There may be some out-of-pocket costs in this scenario.

Ex: Student-Athlete C has a private NYC Medicaid insurance and has opted to waive the SHP. In the same scenario as above, Student-Athlete C most likely will not be able to be seen in this area unless they go to an ER. In this situation usually Student-Athlete C will have to go back to their hometown to be seen by their primary care physician which relate to travel costs and time missed from team functions.

Students with no insurance
Those of you who do not have private insurance MUST keep the SHP. This will cover athletic injuries under the benefit limits, up to $3,500, however there is no guarantee of payment and there may be “out-of-pocket” costs. If your bills exceed this amount, the balance will be submitted to the athletic policy for consideration.

Ex: Student-Athlete D has only the SHP for insurance coverage. Student-Athlete D is injured in a soccer game and has medical expenses related to the injury. Those expenses ($4,000) are submitted to the SHP. The SHP pays $3,500 (maximum benefit) toward the medical expenses but makes Student C pay for the brace that the doctor has required. The remaining $500 is submitted to the athletic policy for payment consideration.

International student-athlete
Our international SHP is different from the general SHP. International students are enrolled in international insurance that is mandated by SUNY. Please be advised that the International student-athletes are only covered up to $1500 for athletic related injuries. You may want to consider paying for the general SHP to accompany your international SHP.