Although it may seem wrong for AU to require its students to purchase health insurance, perhaps anything less than mandatory coverage would prove harmful to the university.
Considering how difficult it is for millions of Americans to purchase and retain insurance, the reason why the university maintains this requirement is simple: How many students would purchase health insurance if it were not required? Chances are, very few. College students are incredibly cash-strapped, and most would forego coverage if it meant paying the rent or tuition bills on time.
Problematically, the absence of adequate health insurance coverage is as much of a risk to the individual student as it is to the campus. It's undeniable that uninsured Americans often refuse treatment, preventative or otherwise, to avoid astronomical medical costs. And for any on-campus resident who's caught their residence hall's unique strain of the flu at lease once, localized medical problems can often evolve into community pandemics without treatment. Good health is thus as much of a personal concern as it is a campus need.
This is not to say, however, that the university's policy is perfect. To put it bluntly, students would purchase health insurance from the university or a third party if health premiums weren't so toweringly high. The Health Center's plan, which is indeed lower than what other institutions provide their students, certainly fits the description. Levying a lump $1,200 fee on students only exacerbates the endemic financial problem that prevents students across the United States from purchasing coverage in the first place. At the very least, substituting waivers with account stops would give students more time to choose a plan and a means of payment that best fits their situation.
Yet, for many, a temporary delay is by no means enough. Undeniably, the health insurance problem rests almost wholly in the laps of American politicians who have arguably done very little to lower monthly premiums and help the nation's 47 million uninsured. There likely isn't a soul in the country who doesn't agree that something should be done to fix the insurance industry - it's more or less a question of how.
But until those anticipated reforms come, the university should do its part. AU needs to protect the health of its students, and its mandatory coverage plan is a good way to do it. But despite the great changes AU administrators have made to its insurance plan - including the new coverage limits and the lower cost - it is still impractical, not to mention indicative a more endemic insurance catastrophe that affects millions every day.
