Illustration by Austin Gilmore

A winter vacation to Vail, Colo., for snowboarding and relaxation ended in disaster for 2004 graduate Myrinda Warner.

An accident on the slopes left Warner with a broken arm. As a dependent on her parents’ health insurance policy, Warner assumed the policy would cover the costs. She was wrong. The accident left her with a $2,800 hospital bill.

“It made me cry,” she said.

Students are often uneducated about health insurance. They don’t know what their policies cover, or they don’t realize that coverage through a parent’s or guardian’s policy will eventually expire. It’s not that students aren’t worried about health insurance, they simply cannot afford it.

Like Warner, students don’t discover the information until it’s too late.

A 2003 Sigma Research study found that more than half of 425 college students surveyed were covered through a parent’s or guardian’s policy. About 20 percent had a health plan through a university or employer. Six out of 10 said that having a health insurance plan was extremely important in post-college employment.

The risk of financial loss should motivate people to be insured, said Mary Beth Fruton, Blue Cross Blue Shield public relations specialist in Topeka. Despite the risk, she said the trend was that young people were not buying health insurance.

Weighing the Costs

The price of not having health insurance is evident to Sarah Stacy, Germantown, Md., senior and member of The University Daily Kansan editorial board. Her aunt avoided going to the doctor despite recurring health problems.

Today, her aunt is $40,000 in debt from medical bills and still has serious health problems.

Stacy’s parents also never had health insurance. For six to eight months during her senior year of high school, Stacy was eligible for coverage through Medicaid. A car accident put Stacy in the hospital for several days. Medicaid paid her bill.

Stacy currently doesn’t have insurance. A health plan is available through her job, but at $200 a month and with severe limitations, Stacy has chosen not to pay for the plan. She keeps her fingers crossed and hopes nothing will happen.

“It just takes one bad turn and I probably couldn’t afford school,” Stacy said.

Bryan Allen, Manhattan senior, also counts on something not happening. His parents’ insurance plan covers him for now, but it will expire after he graduates this month. Until he finds a job or is accepted to a graduate school with health care plans, he said he’ll be on the “aspirin and hope” plan.

Allen understands his family’s insurance policy and knows what it covers. His parents expected him to be familiar with the policy before he came to the University of Kansas.

“Part of going to college is being prepared for the worst,” he said.

Miles Garrett doesn’t have the benefit of a family insurance policy. The Newton senior is independent of his parents and receives no financial aid from them.

While he has no major health problems, Garrett has had a few close calls. Shortly after coming to the University, he had an accident. A key stabbed through is hand after he fell from a ledge. The doctor at Watkins Memorial Health Center said he was lucky because he the key came close to giving him permanent nerve damage. Such a visit at Watkins would cost between $80 and $140.

Garrett has tried to find a health insurance policy, but all the plans have been out of his price range, just as they were for Stacy.

“I figured I could get insurance and go broke, or not get it, roll the dice and maybe go broke,” he said.

A University Plan for the Future

During new student orientation, the University encourages parents to go over their insurance policies with students before they enroll and leave home, said Carol Seager, director of Student Health Services.

Seager encourages students to have health coverage for emergencies. Watkins only offers out-patient services such as office visits, basic first aid and lab work. Students may need coverage for surgery or overnight stays at other hospitals, she said.

The state sanctions MEGA Life and Health Insurance as an insurance provider to students. MEGA offers a plan tailored to students at schools governed by the Board of Regents.

The plan focuses on urgent care and is standard among insurance policies, Seager said.

“Most plans focus on treatment instead of prevention,” she said.

Because the University requires students to have them before enrollment, MEGA does cover some immunizations, which are a form of preventive care.

Matt Overstreet, Augusta law student, would like the University to get more involved. He doesn’t have health insurance, and doesn’t think the MEGA policy is affordable or effective.

Overstreet wants the University to subsidize a health plan through tuition. Such a policy might provide better coverage for a cheaper price because it would be tailored to a group, rather than an individual.

The University doesn’t offer educational sessions about health insurance, Seager said, but the insurance office in Watkins does offer students one-on-one meetings about the MEGA policy.

To pay off the medical bills from her broken arm, Warner had take out a loan so she could continue attending school while paying off her medical expenses.

Two years after her accident, Warner has paid off her medical bills and has a full-time job with health benefits. This time, however, she said she made sure to read the complete policy.