The Student Health Service (SHS), located at 1711 Uppergate Drive, provides outpatient care to students. Regularly enrolled, officially registered students with valid Emory ID cards are eligible for health care at the SHS. The telephone number is 727-7551 (press 1 for appointments).
Outpatient services include care for acute illnesses and injuries, and follow-up of continuing medical problems. Students are seen by appointment. In addition, appointments are available for specialty services, including gynecology and family planning, immunizations, allergy injections, travel, and mental health services. The SHS is open weekdays from 8:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. and most Saturday mornings during the fall and spring semesters from 10:00 A.M. until 1:00 P.M. Summer hours are 8:30 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. on weekdays.
Students with illnesses requiring hospitalization will be admitted to Emory University Hospital.
Students are charged for certain services, including holding and observation care, X-rays, laboratory studies, and consultation with physicians outside the SHS. Students not fully registered in the university are charged for outpatient visits.
An annual fee of $180 is assessed on all full-time allied health students with the exception of those enrolled in the hospital pharmacy technician program and the gynecologic-obstetric nurse practitioner program. Students in these two programs are provided disability insurance coverage through the programs. There are no exemptions from the fee. Immunizations, serological testing, and purified protein derivative (PPD) tuberculin skin testing are handled by the Student Health Service. The fee covers:
All charges for medical care not otherwise covered by health insurance or the annual fee as described above are the responsibility of the student. The cost of health insurance, including both outpatient and inpatient coverage, whether private or through the Emory-sponsored group plan, is the responsibility of the student.
The long-term disability insurance covers students who become totally disabled as a result of injury or sickness. The student must be under the regular care of a physician and be unable to fulfill the requirements of a full-time student. Students will be considered partially disabled if they are unable to fulfill the requirements of a full-time student but are performing at least one of the duties of another occupation on a part-time basis. The disability must start while insured, and there is a waiting period of 180 days. Benefits are payable to age sixty-five (or the period specified in the policy, if the disability starts on or after age sixty). The maximum monthly benefit is fifteen hundred dollars and will be reduced by benefits received on the same disability from Social Security, Workers' Compensation, or other plans required by law that are intended to replace income.
Students are strongly encouraged to enroll in the medical insurance plan offered by Emory. Students who enroll in an alternate plan must provide evidence that the plan is comparable to Emory's continuous health insurance coverage is required for all students. Allied health students enrolled in the Emory-sponsored health insurance plan must pay the annual premium at the time of fall registration.
Students with pre-existing medical conditions covered under existing medical plans are advised to maintain existing coverage and supplement it, if necessary, to meet Emory's requirement. To provide evidence of comparability, students who enroll in an alternate medical insurance plan must have the medical insurance compliance form completed by their medical insurance carrier. The form will be sent to accepted students with pre-arrival information.
International students, regardless of non-immigrant visa type or type of admission, must provide evidence of medical insurance coverage for one year when registering for fall semester (or the remainder of the academic year, including summer, when registering during any other semester) before they can complete registration. Students on a J-1 visa must also ensure that the alternate plan meets the requirements of the United States Information Agency, including coverage for accompanying dependents.
In the event of a life-threatening emergency requiring immediate treatment and emergency-room service, the student should go directly to the Emory University Hospital emergency department or call DeKalb County Emergency Service at 911 (dial direct).
Students with emotional concerns may be seen by a psychiatrist in the SHS for evaluation and limited counseling, free of charge. If further treatment is indicated, available referral options will be discussed. Those students who are enrolled in the university-sponsored health insurance plans may be eligible for partial coverage of the cost of private psychotherapy. The referral must be made or approved by the SHS psychiatrist and is subject to any other policy limitations. The Counseling Center of the university is also available for short-term, nonacute emotional problems.
Students' dependents are not eligible for care through the Faculty-Staff Clinic (FSC). Students' spouses and unmarried children over the age of twelve are seen by appointment on a fee-for-service basis in the FSC of the University Health Service. For more information about the service or for appointments, call the FFSC at 404-727-7535.