Health care in the United States is extraordinarily, sometimes unbelievably, expensive. Only foolish or impoverished people fail to buy health insurance to help protect themselves and their dependents from large medical bills. And even if you buy insurance, you should be sure have enough savings to pay for some medical bills. Many insurance companies require you to pay the bill first, then request a reimbursement from them. Reimbursement checks sometimes take several weeks to arrive, and sometimes do not cover the total amount you spent.

You should buy traveler’s insurance to cover you during your trip and the early part of your stay in the United States, unless you already have insurance that will cover you outside China.

Many American higher-education institutions require foreign students (and sometimes all students) to buy health insurance. Federal immigration regulations require students and dependents in J status to have health insurance that meets specified standards. Your school should inform you about those standards if you will be in J status (that is, you use Form DS-2019 to obtain your visa).

Your International Student Office will provide information to you about health-insurance policies that are available to you at the school you will attend.

More information about health insurance appears in the chapter about health and safety.