While the Democrats in the U.S. Congress continue their five-month long quest to pass health reform legislation that would provide basic health insurance to all U.S. citizens, college students and young adults hope to remain healthy.
According to a new report from the Government Accountability Office, more than 20 percent of college students have no health insurance, totaling 1.7 million students, and only 57 percent of universities in the United States provide health care plans for students, which vary dramatically in terms of services covered.
College students and young adults are likely to be without health coverage. According to a Gallup poll, Hispanics (41 percent) have a higher percentage of individuals without health insurance than young adults between the ages of 18 and 29 (27 percent).
Students at Fresno State have access to health and psychological services that are covered by fees in their tuition. These services include urgent care visits with physicians and nurse practitioners, an on-site pharmacy, x-rays, health education, family planning, and psychological counseling.
In addition to services at the Student Health Center, students registered for nine units or more are eligible for student insurance, run by the California State University system through Blue Cross.
But for recent college graduates who have yet to enter the work force or have failed to find a job with an employer that offers private insurance, some are left in a precarious position.
Students who have access to the Student Health Center on campus, are still susceptible to catastrophic medical conditions that would present unforeseen and unbearable financial costs.
The lack of insurance has forced many students to move back home with their parents, while others who don’t have this option must try and make ends meet and hope they remain in good health.
Fresno State alumnus Morgan Boushell knows this all too well.
“I had medical coverage while I was a student,” Boushell said. “I moved out of my family’s house and had to get a position in retail that doesn’t offer health insurance.”
Sarah Lanfranco, a supervisor at the Bulldog Shop, is concerned that because her position is not offered health insurance, she can’t get basic preventative care.
“I haven’t had health insurance since I graduated in 2007, and I can’t even afford to get routine physicals,” she said.
She also had a dental emergency last year which required a route canal that she had to pay for out of pocket. This set her back on paying off her student loans from Fresno State and National University, where she has been going in order to get a teaching credential.
According to The Chronicle of Higher Education, most students who drop out, do so for work-related reasons.
Jeffrey Cummins, an associate professor of political science, said the problems with the California budget will likely put health care on the back burner.
“A few years ago Gov. Schwarzenegger proposed a similar plan, but when the cost estimates came out, it was completely squashed,” Cummins said.
Cummins said insuring young adults would not only be beneficial to those who are currently without insurance, but also pragmatic.
“It makes sense to want to pull in young and healthier workers in order to help bear some of the medical costs for a universal plan,” Cummins added. “This is why there are discussions on mandating young adults to buy insurance.”
