Referral Instructions
You’ve been referred off campus by your Student Health Center primary care provider. Please call the office and don’t wait for them to call you.
- Referrals expire at the end of each academic year and must be renewed at the beginning of the new academic year.
- If you graduate in the fall or winter quarter, your referral will expire at the end of that quarter.
- We highly recommend that you go to an in network specialist, so you don’t incur high medical costs.
Steps to take after receiving a referral
- Call to schedule an appointment with the specialist you’ve been referred to in Santa Cruz, we have faxed your referral to them. Please view our Provider List resource (pdf) to confirm that the clinician is in-network with Anthem Blue Cross.
- If the specialist is not in Santa Cruz, use the Provider Anthem Blue Cross site to find a specialist in your area. Your alpha prefix is XDP.
- Download the Sydney Health app. The app contains your electronic insurance card, member ID, and benefit information. After downloading the app, follow the setup instructions.
- You may be contacted by Health Information Management to complete a release of information if we do not receive your visit notes.
- Understand Your Costs. Review your UC SHIP Summary of Benefits and Coverage, along with your Anthem Benefit booklet, so you’re aware of your copay (due when you arrive at your appointment), deductible, and coinsurance for off-campus specialists, laboratories, or imaging facilities.
- Need to view your referral? Visit Health e-Messenger and log in using your Cruz ID and Gold password. Select “Referrals” from the left sidebar.
- If you need a ride to your specialist appointment, please reply to the secure message that we sent you or call the Insurance Department at (831) 459-2389.
Dual Insurance Instructions
If you’re traveling in California, you can get primary care at any UC student health services clinic. Every UC campus has one.
If you have insurance other than UC SHIP, your private health insurance will be billed first, and UC SHIP will be billed second when you see an outside specialist (except Medi-Cal, MRMIP, and TRICARE).
How to upload your medical insurance card:
- Log in to Health e-Messenger.
- Navigate to “insurance card.”
- Click on “add new card.”
- Upload the required images:
- Front image of your insurance card.
- Back image of your insurance card.
- Click “save” to complete the upload
Please let us know if your medical insurance plan is Medi-Cal, managed by Kaiser, Anthem Blue Cross, or Blue Shield, and specify which county you reside in. If you have any questions, please contact our Insurance Department via email.