Michelle's Law Could Affect Your Insurance as a College Student with Cancer

Published November 25, 2008 @ 09:46AM PT

Michelle’s Law legislation would ensure students don’t have to maintain full-time status as a condition of coverage

Source: Cancer Action Network, American Cancer Society

If you are a college student diagnosed with cancer, you should have many priorities. Staying on top of your grades, getting to your cancer treatments, fighting nausea and getting better should be your priority, not worrying if you are going to lose your health insurance coverage.

Right now, many college students receive their health care coverage through their parents’ family insurance plan. When a major illness comes up like cancer, students risk losing their health insurance coverage if they have to stop attending classes to get better.

This fall, full-time college students facing a medical emergency became one-step closer to having protections in place so they can keep their insurance coverage, regardless of enrollment status. In late September, the Senate approved Michelle’s Law (H.R. 2851), which would allow some seriously ill college students to take up to 12 months medical leave without the risk of being dropped from a parent's insurance plan.

What is Michelle's Law?

This critical legislation is named after a New Hampshire college student Michelle Morse who was diagnosed with colon cancer. Her family’s health insurance would not cover her if she was not a full-time student, so she was forced to take a full class schedule while undergoing chemotherapy. After Michelle passed away, her mother, Ann Marie Morse, decided that no other student should face the same challenge, and has been working to pass a law that will not let this happen to any other family.

Michelle's law requires health insurance companies to cover college students while on medical leave for up to 12 months. This will ensure that college students with cancer can focus on getting better and not worry about how they are going to be covered for the cancer treatments they need.

Michelle’s Law requires students to provide written documentation from a medical professional explaining the need for the temporary medical leave and only applies to full-time students who are already dependents on a health plan.  The bill does not require insurance companies to cover any new procedures or new individuals, it simply prevents them from dropping coverage.

“Ensuring access to quality health care for all Americans, including college students, is essential to winning the fight against cancer,” said Laura J. Hilderley, RN, MS, volunteer chair of the ACS CAN board.  “Enacting legislation that protects health insurance coverage for seriously ill college students is a step toward achieving this goal.” 

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Trista Hargrove
Phone: (202) 585-3221
Email: Trista.Hargrove@cancer.org