honoluluadvertiser.com

Sponsored by:

Comment, blog & share photos

Log in | Become a member
The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Saturday, November 1, 2003

Health coverage offered for UH students

By Robbie Dingeman
Advertiser Health Writer

 •  Details online

For information on the medical insurance plan for college students, visit their website.

About 3,000 University of Hawai'i students have signed up for health insurance through private coverage offered through the school. But nearly one of every five students still lacks health insurance.

Dr. Lily Ning, director of University Health Services, said the majority of the roughly 56,000 students eligible on all islands and at all colleges within the UH system have insurance coverage through family or jobs.

The college healthcare plan, provided by HMSA, is also open to Chaminade University students. About 100 students from that school have enrolled.

Glenn Nochi, who tracks health benefits at University Health Services, said recent surveys indicate about 18 percent say they don't have any health insurance.

Ning said that a student insurance plan has been offered for years but that some students don't know about it. She said some students without coverage "may not go to the doctor; they may not get the care that they need."

Government and businesses focused this week on the issue of how Hawai'i has gone from having the lowest rate for people without health insurance to one out of 10 people saying they go without health insurance because of cost or other issues.

Gov. Linda Lingle this week suggested businesses incentives and increased support for the community health centers that frequently care for the uninsured.

Kapi'olani Community College student Cody Keale, one of those without health insurance, said he's not sure whether he will sign up for the plan now that he knows about it because he needs to find out how it could fit into his budget. "I still need to check that out," he said. "I need to talk to my counselor."

Nochi said the university solicits private companies for insurance plans every three years and is in the first year of a plan with HMSA.

For the 2003-04 school year, a basic plan for an individual is about $325 for a semester and $871 for a year (fall, spring and summer sessions). The comprehensive plan, which includes drug and vision coverage, is $450 a semester and about $1,200 for the entire academic year. For family coverage, that increases to about $1,325 a semester for the basic plan to about $5,000 for the family comprehensive plan for a full academic year.

To be eligible, Nochi said, undergraduates must have a minimum of six credits during the fall or spring semesters and three credits during the summer sessions. Graduate students must carry at least four credit hours.

Nochi said the plan covers most services and doesn't have a deductible that people pay before the insurance kicks in. There is no exclusion for health conditions existing before sign-up, he said.

Reach Robbie Dingeman at rdingeman@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2429