Students participating in a GEO-sponsored program are covered under the Accident & Sickness Insurance Plan by Chubb-Ace American Insurance Co., and travel assistance is provided by AXA Assistance USA. Students enrolling on programs from SIT, CIEE and IE3 will be enrolled in insurance provided by those organizations. The information that follows is for insurance provided by GEO. 

All students going on GEO-sponsored programs are covered by a blanket insurance policy and have the same master insurance policy number. You will be issued an insurance certificate prior to leaving on your program.

Be aware that this insurance is considered secondary insurance, and that GEO recommends that you keep your primary health insurance in the U.S. while you study abroad. Full details of the insurance coverage, benefits and exclusions will be uploaded to your online GEO application before you depart.

The duration of your coverage is seven days before your program starts through seven days after your program ends, starting when you depart the US and ending when you return to the US (if this is before the 7 days after-program coverage ends).

Your local program staff or the AXA Travel Assistance contact on your insurance certificate can assist you in procuring medical attention and can help you with opening a claim.  GEO can assist with locating a local mental health or medical provider in your area, although some regions may not have English-speaking providers readily available. All students are responsible for filing their own claims for reimbursement or payment of services provided.

This insurance is for accident and sickness coverage and does not cover personal property loss or trip cancellations and delays (except when caused by a personal medical condition verified by a doctor). You are advised to take out travelers insurance for personal property as well to cover theft or damage to your laptop, cell phone, etc. You might also check to see if your personal property is covered under your parents’ homeowners insurance while traveling abroad. GEO does not endorse a personal property insurance provider, but a quick internet search for student personal property travel insurance will result in a number of options.

Note that this insurance policy covers illness due to COVID-19. COVID-19 testing is only covered if related to illness. Travel-related testing, testing due to possible exposure or surveillance testing is not covered by this policy.

Take special note of the activities and treatments not covered under the insurance GEO provides that are listed in the Exclusions and Limitations section of the policy. While GEO does not encourage students to participate in extreme sports or other activities not covered by the provided insurance, you should look into getting additional coverage that will provide coverage if you do plan to engage in these activities.

If you need to seek medical attention while abroad:

• You will likely need to pay up front for all necessary procedures. It may be possible to pre-arrange direct payment for some services to approved providers. You can contact AXA Travel Assistance with a few days’ notice to start this process.
• Keep all receipts for medical care and medications abroad since they will need to be submitted to the insurance company when filing for reimbursement.
• To be reimbursed, you will need to submit a claim form to the insurance company along with itemized medical bills or pharmacy receipts, translated to English and currency converted to US dollars.
• Students are responsible for filing their own insurance claims with the insurance company. A copy of the claim form will be uploaded into your online application portal documents section before you depart.
• The completed and signed claim form should be mailed to the insurance company address within 90 days from the date of injury or from the date of the first medical treatment, or as soon as reasonably possible.
• You may consult with the insurance company before the program start date to find out whether certain medical care or support can be arranged in advance.
• The details of the insurance plan—including exclusions, benefits, and contact information for the insurance company—will be provided in your GEO online application portal. Please note that extreme sport activities (such as motorcycle riding, skiing and rock climbing) are generally not covered in the policy.

If you are participating in a third-party program such as CIEE, SIT, IE3 Global, or DIS, you will receive insurance coverage from the third-party program and not from GEO. Consult your specific third-party provider for additional information and details regarding your insurance coverage during your program.