The Enrollment Form must be filled out annually each fall by the add/drop deadline for any optional enrollment. To enroll, you can bring or mail the form to University Health Services, or fax it to 413-577-5023.
Mailing Address:
University Health Services
Attn: Patient Services
150 Infirmary Way
Amherst, MA 01003-9288
Optional Enrollment FAQs
Optional enrollment is available for those who are:
- Matriculated in a day academic program taking fewer than five credits per semester
- Graduate students matriculated in a day academic program who've paid the Continuous Enrollment Fee for the semester
- Matriculated into an undergraduate program through Continuing Education or University Without Walls, are legal residents of Massachusetts and are taking six or more credits per semester
- Matriculated into a graduate program through Continuing Education, are legal residents of Massachusetts, and are taking six or more credits per semester
- Online students matriculated into a graduate program through Continuing Education, are legal residents of Massachusetts, and are taking six or more credits per semester
- Matriculated Continuing Education students participating in off-campus programs
Matriculated students participating in official off-campus programs are eligible to enroll in the individual SHBP and purchase the SHBP family plan.
Non-matriculated students are not eligible for health plan enrollment.
The Enrollment Form must be submitted every fall by the add/drop deadline for those who are not automatically enrolled and/or those who need family plans. It is highly recommended that you submit the Enrollment Form in late June or early July. Fall semester coverage begins August 1.
Students who opt into the SHBP, and/or enroll in a family plan, only have to do so annually in the fall. The coverage will carry over to the spring semester as long as you are a UMass student enrolled in credit(s).
Students who are annually enrolled during the fall semester who wish to drop the SHBP for the spring semester can do so by filling out the Alternative Waiver form and sending the form to Patient Services by the spring add/drop deadline. Students who need to enroll for the spring semester only should submit the Enrollment Form in December; coverage begins in early February.
Please Note: You must be registered for at least one credit or have paid the Continuous Enrollment Fee for your enrollment form to be processed. If you haven't registered yet, Patient Services will hold your enrollment form until you do, but processing will be delayed. Processing can take up to 2 weeks. If you submit the enrollment form before the semester's add/drop deadline, enrollment will backdate to the start date of that semester's SHBP. You'll be able to be seen at UHS right away; if you're seen elsewhere or try to obtain prescriptions, you may encounter difficulties until the enrollment is fully processed.
- Members not enrolled with credit(s) by the start of the spring semester will need to complete a manual enrollment, as the Bursar’s office needs to have students enrolled to be able to bill for the SHBP
- Billing for the Student Health Benefit Plan (SHBP) will still be per semester
- If you were automatically enrolled in the SHBP with 5 or more credits and then drop below 5 credits during that semester, you will need to complete a manual enrollment form to keep the SHBP coverage.
- Members who wish to terminate the spring coverage will need to complete the Alternative Waiver form, which will be available on our website in January, so that the Bursar’s office knows to remove the fee from your bill. This needs to be done by the spring semester graduate add/drop deadline.
The available SHBP Family Plan covers a student’s spouse or same-sex domestic partner, and/or unmarried dependent children under age 26.
To purchase the family plan and enroll eligible family members, you must be personally enrolled in the SHBP. A marriage certificate (or, for same-sex domestic partners, Affidavit of Domestic Partnership) and birth certificates for qualifying dependents are required to enroll in the family plan.
Family plan enrollments must be renewed every fall semester by filling out the Enrollment Form. Fax, mail, or bring the form to UHS Patient Services before the end of the semester's add/drop period.
University Health Services
Attn: Patient Services
150 Infirmary Way
Amherst, MA 01003-9288