Graduate Student Subsidy

Each individual school is responsible for organizing its own internal administrative networks for identifying eligible graduate students, answering questions, and managing the reconciliation of all applicable accounts. The Office of the Provost will continue to act as the administrative liaison among the individual schools, Student Health and Wellness, and the central administration.

The subsidy covers the premium cost of Aetna Student Health's single-coverage health plan. The University will subsidize 100% of the single-coverage premium this year.

For the purposes of this policy, a qualified graduate student is defined as follows:

• A graduate teaching assistant (GTA) or graduate research assistant (GRA) who earns at least $5,000 over the course of the academic year. Please see PROV-001: Graduate Assistantships for more information.

Graduate students who are GTAs or GRAs who do not earn $5,000 during the academic year DO NOT QUALIFY for the health insurance subsidy. Qualifying graduate students must have at least $5,000 in support under one of the two definitions listed above. 

The University cannot provide tax advice. Please consult a professional advisor or https://www.irs.gov/publications/p970 for more information.

• Graduate Student Job Titles Other than GRA and GTA:
  Graduate students employed in other capacities by the University (e.g. as graduate wage assistant or as a work study employee) do not qualify for the graduate student health insurance subsidy even if their annual income exceeds the $5,000 threshold.
• First-Professional Students:
  First-professional students in the Schools of Law and Medicine and the Darden School of Business, unless they qualify based on participation in one of the University's accredited joint-degree master's or doctoral programs, do not qualify for the graduate student health insurance subsidy.
• Post-doctoral Fellows:
  Post-doctoral fellows are not graduate students and do not qualify for the graduate student health insurance subsidy. For information on the postdoctoral fellow health insurance program, see here.

Eligibility is determined by each school or department. If you think you are eligible, please contact your department or one of the appropriate school-level contacts:

Yes. Students who enroll with Aetna Student Health may acquire dependent coverage. Premiums associated with dependent coverage will be paid directly by students to Aetna. Dependent enrollment forms may be requested by emailing sth-ins@virginia.edu.

No. The graduate student health insurance subsidy is non-transferable and non-refundable. Unused subsidies cannot be refunded for their equivalent cash value.

No. The subsidy is non-transferable.

A student may “cease to qualify” for the graduate student health insurance subsidy for any number of reasons, including:

• The student withdraws from school during the course of the academic year;
• The student is not employed in the capacity that was anticipated at the start of the academic year (i.e., the student was expected to earn $5,000 as a TA during the spring semester, but in actuality was not employed in that capacity); or
• Fellowship funds are not awarded because the student ceases to qualify for that fellowship.

If a student “ceases to qualify” after s/he has enrolled in the Aetna Student Health plan, there will be no refund of the payment to the University of Virginia. The University and Aetna Student Health will allow the student's health insurance coverage to continue until it expires.