Students automatically opt-in to the balanced insurance plan at the beginning of the fall, winter, and summer semesters. But they can opt out if they’re covered by another plan.
The balanced plan covers payments for direct prescriptions, dental benefits and extended health care such as paramedical services, vision care and more. Some prescriptions covered by the balanced plan include most prescription drugs, insulin injectables and supplies, oral contraceptives and more.
Students who enrol in fall, winter or summer semesters will have coverage until Aug. 31, 2025.
IGNITE student advocate Isabella Vergara Bedoya said she found the coverage confusing at first, so she understands what other students are going through.
“There’s the balanced plan. This one has 80 per cent coverage and the maximum is $2,000 for drugs. The dental comes with basic and preventative, and the maximum is $500. Extended health is a maximum of $300 and a $75 maximum for vision,” she said.
Bedoya said there are enhanced plans available for students who need additional coverage for prescription drugs or dental.
“There is the enhanced dental plan, which covers more in the dental aspect. For the balanced plan, it’s only a maximum of $500 but for the enhanced plan it’s $800 and it has some other features,” she said.
Bedoya said the enhanced drug plan offers 90 per cent coverage of the cost of prescription drugs.
“There’s the enhanced drug plan which is a maximum of $4,000 and the contraception maximum is $500,” she said.
Third-year nursing student Christy Viscaino said she didn’t know the extent of her insurance coverage. She decided to opt-in to the balanced plan for the first time this semester.
“I think the insurance plan alleviates some stress for students because students already have a lot of other expenses to think about like rent, phone bills and other stuff,” she said.
She said having a more affordable insurance option that is automatically charged in our tuition is a helpful way for students to budget.
“Students tend to put health costs at the bottom of their priority list, but this way the insurance is part of their tuition and students have the opportunity to have basic things like a dental cleaning,” she said.
For students who need an easily accessible dental office, Campus Dental is an on-site dentistry at Humber North and Lakeshore campuses.
Dental hygienist and owner of Campus Dental Marcy Skribe said most students aren't getting cleanings as frequently as they should.
“We always recommend the enhanced dental program for students. The balanced plan covers up to $500, but students should be getting cleanings every four to six months,” she said.
The enhanced dental plan covers up to $800 in dental services and $1,500 in prescriptions.
“Everyone gets what is called a balanced plan and under that balanced plan, you are covered up to an hour of cleaning at 100 per cent,” she said. “Then you have some coverage for fillings some coverage for x-rays, exams. There’s lots of coverage.”
Skribe said Humber’s on-site dental office is a resource she encourages students to use as it’s flexible, accessible and their staff are empathetic towards students’ needs.
“Most of the students that come into our office have either never been to a dentist before to they’ve only been a couple of times. A lot of people say that they didn’t even know they had the coverage” she said.
The fall semester opt-in fee is $271.67 including taxes for the balanced plan. The fee automatically reflects in students' MyHumber accounts. The last day to opt out of IGNITE insurance is Oct. 11 at 4 p.m. To learn more about IGNITE insurance visit https://wespeakstudent.com/ or https://ignitestudentlife.com/.
