Tip of the Day

Prepare now to meet the requirements of "Michelle's Law." Signed on Oct. 9 by Pres. Bush, the act requires health plans to allow college students who take a leave of absence or reduce their class load because of illness to remain dependents under their parents´ health plan. Ill students may keep their dependent status for up to one year.

Effective for plan years beginning on or after Oct. 9, 2009, and Jan. 1, 2010, for calendar-year plans, the law outlines several qualifications for students taking medical leaves:
* Students must be enrolled as a full-time student immediately before the leave of absence or schedule reduction.
* Students must have written certification from a treating physician that the leave or reduced schedule is medically necessary.
* The leave or reduced schedule must spur the loss of student status.

The law is named for Michelle Morse, a New Hampshire student who was diagnosed with colon cancer while in college but stayed in school full-time to retain her parents' health insurance. She died in 2005, six months after graduating.