b_r_um
Tue, 15 Jul 2014 15:47:48 +0000

Health insurance in the US is expensive because medical care is expensive. For example, I once paid $3,000 to have an injury treated at the ER - just x-rays, antibiotics and bandages. For better or worse, the student health insurance plan offered by your university is probably your best option.

Travel health insurances that you can buy in your home country are probably cheaper, but they’ll have lots of exclusions in the fine print. For example, they may not cover injuries stustained during sport/exercise or any kind of chronic condition (pre-existing or not). For example, if you get diagnosed with diabetes in the US, travel insurance may only pay for acute exacerbations (e.g. if you need emergency treatment because your blood sugar went too high or too low) but not for the day-to-day management of the condition (injectible insulin and such).