The College Fix

Purdue graduate students have seen a monumental increase in health care insurance fees, an increase that ranks Purdue last overall in the Big Ten for graduate student health insurance plan costs.

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“(Coverage) is better than it was in the past,” said (Andrew Robinson, president of Purdue Graduate Student Government). “In 2004, it was around $5,000 for your spouse to be insured, but for graduate students it was about half what it is now.”

Robinson said this especially becomes detrimental for international students, who make up 48 percent of the graduate school. With spouses unable to work without work visas, these fees can be significant. Robinson pointed out that with the health care network primarily limiting students to attend PUSH (Purdue University Student Health Center), dependents are forced to go out of network to get certain medical attention.

“One problem we’ve found with PUSH is that there are no obstetricians or pediatricians,” he said. “That’s something we would always have to go out of network for.”

With the University’s decision to increase health care premiums by 26 percent, health care fees for a spouse of a graduate student increased from $1,691 to $2,139. University insurance plans for faculty, Robinson said, have not had an increase in health care premiums and remain at six percent.

“Grad staff is one of the largest staffs on campus,” Robinson said. “This year, our premiums are going up. I’m not sure exactly where the faculty and staff’s premiums are, but I’ve been told it’s around six percent.”

Deductibles have been increased, as well, from $350 to $400 for in-network health care services. For out of network services, the deductible is $700.

Read the full story at the Purdue Exponent.

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