What is the use of OSHC medical insurance that must be purchased for studying in Australia?

Overseas Student Health Insurance (OSHC) is a special insurance for international students studying in Australia.

According to the requirements of the Australian Immigration Bureau, students must continuously participate in overseas student medical insurance during their stay in Australia. If his student visa is extended, he must also extend his insurance plan accordingly. If international students have spouses or/kloc-children under the age of 0/8 to accompany them in Australia, they must also participate in the medical insurance for international students. If the student fails to pay the insurance premium or renew the insurance contract on time after the insurance expires, the student visa may be affected.

Koala sauce experience sharing

At the beginning of 20 14, koala sauce must pay the OSHC fee before renewing its visa in Australia, otherwise the visa will not be accepted. Because the length of renewal depends on the length of the course, Xiao Jiang continued to study as a graduate student for one year, so the length of the visa is 1 year. When Xiao Jiang applied for renewal, he paid the OSHC fee for one year, and the visa came down in about two weeks!

Services provided by the Occupational Safety and Health Council

OSHC mainly includes hospital insurance, medical service insurance, ambulance insurance and drug insurance. After the students are hospitalized, the insurance company will pay all or part of the medical expenses according to the reimbursement ratio agreed in the contract.

The Australian government has designated a specialized insurance company to sell medical insurance for international students, and stipulated that its insurance plan must include the following contents:

1 Pay for in-hospital medical services such as in-hospital surgery, according to the reimbursement standard of MBS formulated by Australian publicly-funded medical system;

Reimbursement of medical service fees obtained in out-of-hospital medical institutions according to MBS standards, such as outpatient fees of general practitioners or specialists;

3. Reimbursement of room and board expenses in a multi-person ward of a public hospital or a private hospital that has an agreement with an insurance company;

Reimbursement of drug expenses approved by the federal medical insurance;

Medical insurance for international students has restrictions on reimbursement standards for prescription drugs. Generally, each prescription drug is reimbursed up to 50 Australian dollars, single students are reimbursed up to 300 Australian dollars a year, and families are reimbursed up to 600 Australian dollars a year.

6. Reimbursement of ambulance service fees, etc.

The above is the most basic coverage of medical insurance for Australian students. However, in order to meet the different needs of the insured, the insurance plan designed by the insurance company may include a wider range of medical services, such as providing more dental treatment insurance, providing optometry, glasses, physical therapy and other auxiliary medical insurance. Students can choose the most suitable insurance products according to their actual needs, taking into account insurance costs and other factors.

Provisions of occupational safety and health bureau on pre-existing conditions.

Pre-existing condition refers to the diseases or latent symptoms that students have suffered before insurance. For example, suffering from chronic diseases such as heart disease and asthma. Pregnancy before insurance is usually a pre-existing condition.

Medical insurance for overseas students in Australia usually stipulates that students must be insured for 12 consecutive months before insurance companies begin to reimburse medical expenses related to existing diseases.

How to get OSHC?

When applying for a student visa in Australia, students must first obtain medical insurance for overseas students while studying in Australia.

Students can buy medical insurance for international students through their schools. Some schools choose insurance companies to provide medical insurance for their students. Schools (such as Australian National University, University of Sydney, University of New South Wales, etc. Students are required to pay medical insurance premiums at the same time as tuition fees. In this way, the student's admission notice will indicate that you have participated in overseas student medical insurance. Students can use this letter to apply for an Australian student visa.

If the student is an international student funded by the Australian government, the Australian government will pay the insurance premium for overseas students' medical insurance.

If students do not want to participate in the insurance recommended by the school, they also have the right to choose other insurance companies designated by the government to buy medical insurance for international students. In Australia, there are mainly five government-designated insurance companies providing student insurance. They are: Medibank Private, Bupa Australia, Australian Health Management, Alliance Global Aid, NIBOSC. Students can compare insurance prices and insurance services on the websites of these companies and buy them directly through their websites.

Costs of OSHC

Generally speaking, according to the cost standard of 20 13 of the most basic medical insurance for international students, that is, the insurance plan that meets the minimum insurance requirements stipulated by the government, the annual insurance premium for single students is about 450 Australian dollars, that for two-person families (students themselves and their spouses) is about 1200 Australian dollars, and that for multi-person families (students themselves and their spouses and children) is about 2,000 Australian dollars.

International students can apply for single insurance. If students' spouses and minor children accompany them to study in Australia, they can apply for family insurance together. Students who have purchased medical insurance for international students can cancel the insurance if they have not obtained a student visa, and usually get a full refund from the insurance company.

concentrate one's attention

It must be noted that the Australian government stipulates that international students cannot use medical insurance purchased in other countries. Only Australian insurance companies approved by the government can provide medical insurance for international students. Therefore, overseas medical insurance provided by other insurance companies does not apply to students studying in Australia.

If students change their visa types and no longer use student visas during their stay in Australia, they must contact the insurance company to change their insurance plans in time, because the new visa may not allow the use of overseas student medical insurance. Students' insurance companies will suspend their medical insurance for overseas students, and may also advise students to switch to other insurance plans suitable for visa status.