Students Face Hidden Costs with Campus Health
A growing problem college students are now facing in the US is related to the rising costs of campus health care.
These unexpected, sometimes hidden costs are in addition to the ongoing rising costs of higher education, which are increasing at a rate faster than national inflation.
A fundamental conflict exists between institutions’ lack of participation in network-based family coverage that most students are already covered by and their mandatory campus plans, which force students to nominate minimal coverage for maximum profit, sometimes regardless of what coverage they may already have. This profit often either goes back to the school or to the insurance companies themselves. The problem is further illuminated by the fact that most college students spend anywhere from $2000-$3000 a year on their health, creating a billion-dollar corner of the health care industry.
Some students point out the difficulties in paying these costs considering their hourly wages, which fall around $7.50. Schools argue that their mandatory plans decrease the likelihood that students will neglect their health because they can’t afford it, plus state that they simply don’t have the resources to register with the myriad of health care providers in order to accommodate a diverse student body participating in pre-existing coverage.
Representatives from Georgia Southern University and Washington University speak about their particular policies while the programs of other schools such as Brigham Young University, Brown University, and some colleges in Massachusetts.
The most effective impact upon the conflict is said to be pressure placed on institutions by students and their parents, who are both urged to be aware of their chosen school’s plan.
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