Newspaper Page Text
Grad Students a Step
Closer to Health
Insurance Change
On Oct. 16, the University of Georgia's
Graduate Student Association (GSA) claimed a
victory. On that day came news that the Board
of Regents gave UGA—as well as 34 other uni
versities under its jurisdiction—a green light
to implement a health insurance "rider" for
graduate students. (Generally, a rider is like
an amendment to an insurance policy; in this
case, it is an added fee for more services.) If
the university chooses to implement the GSA's
proposed rider, it could mark the end of what
has been a relatively brief and civil skirmish,
considering the dramatic saga surrounding
graduate student health benefits that dates
back to 1993 and includes,
in one of its more riveting
chapters, student picketing
in the streets.
In August, over
2,800 graduate teaching
assistants and research
assistants who were man-
datorily enrolled in the
university-sponsored Pearce & Pearce insur
ance policy found out that their out-of-pocket
maximum had been quietly raised fourfold,
to $10,000. The university said that this was
done to avoid raising premiums an additional
6 percent, on top of a 6 percent hike that
it had already imposed. The news was dev
astating to the few students with expensive
ailments, not to mention foreboding for any
student prone to falling down a flight of
stairs. After learning of the policy change, the
GSA, headed by president Will Rooks, swiftly
moved into action and formulated the rider
that the university is now free to implement.
The GSA's version of the rider would tack
an extra $86 onto students' yearly premiums
in order to bring the out-of-pocket maximum
back down to $2,500. The university also has
an option to implement a $57 rider which
would lower the maximum to $5,000, but
Rooks says that grad students who were sur
veyed overwhelmingly favor the first option.
In a news conference in September, university
President Michael Adams signaled that he
may use money donated by the UGA Athletic
Association to share the cost of the rider to
the tune of 40 percent.
In an interview with Flagpole before the
Regents' decision, Rooks, a public policy stu
dent, found parallels to the larger problems of
modern health insurance, such as efficiency
being valued over equity. "I think the very
basis of insurance is that you come together
and create a risk pool under the assumption
that no one is going to be held out in the rain
if they ever have to use this insurance policy.
And by raising that maximum out-of-pocket so
high, you're making an inequitable policy in
that the people who actually use it bear the
heaviest burden," Rooks said, adding: "That's
the trade-off we're unwilling to make."
The implementation of the rider would
be especially good news to Nicole Camastra,
a PhD student in English literature who has
breast cancer and racked up $140,000 in
medical bills last year. Camastra was featured
in an August Athens Banner-Herald article that
detailed how graduate students were taken off
guard by the change in the policy.
Even given the financial reprieve offered
by the rider (which will likely be retroactive to
the beginning of the school year), Camastra's
views toward her insurance provider don't
seem like they'll change much. "You've got to
be really vigilant to make sure you're not over
paying," she said, adding that making sure her
insurance payments come through is "like a
full-time job." Camastra notes that a surgery
she underwent on June 11 was just paid for in
October. "Once the bills start getting to the
tens and hundreds of thousands, then, yeah,
the insurance company's going to look for a
way not to pay it," she said.
Graduate student employees can "hard
waiver" out of the plan if they are insured
in a group plan elsewhere, but otherwise are
a "captive audience," as Camastra said. She
mentioned that many of her married col
leagues choose to opt out in favor of their
spouses' plans and have fewer problems get
ting reimbursed, especially
for pregnancy-related
expenses.
In another change
quietly implemented by
the university over the
summer, spouses of grad
students on the plan now
have a maximum benefit
of only $50,000, markedly less than last year's
cap of $300,000. The GSA has not challenged
this change in the policy—yet. "The rider [is]
a short-term solution," said Will Rooks, who
is also trying to create a standing student
advisory committee on the Board of Regents.
"It's part of a longer-term, comprehensive
strategy."
Jeff Gore
County Grant Will
Fund Expansion of
Local Biotech Company
Expansion of a local business—Athens
Research and Technology, which sells human
proteins and antibodies to corporate research
ers and others—will be partly funded by a
local grant and will help "make this city a true
center of biotechnology," said commissioner
Ed Robinson at the Oct. 22 Athens-Clarke
County Commission meeting. The expansion
will be funded mostly by local bank loans
and by the companies involved, but will also
include $100,000 from a county "gap financ
ing" fund that encourages the creation of
low- and middle-income jobs. The new facility
will be built on Olympic Drive (near existing
biotech manufacturers Merial and Noramco);
Robinson said it will include additional "wet
lab" space that can be leased by a related
company (ARTBIO) to other biotech startups.
"We've needed something like this for a
long time," he said. "This, I think, really is the
first step [toward] developing a whole new
avenue to Athens industry: high-paying jobs,
large revenue streams and young companies
growing into big international businesses."
Local biotech leaders told the Athens Banner-
Herald last year that UGA has spun off 16 new
biotech startups, and that Athens' quality of
life makes it easy for companies to attract
their employees to Athens.
John Huie johnphuie@gmail.com
Students found out their
out-of-pocket maximum
had been quietly raised
fourfold.
FOXES IN THE HENHOUSE
Politicians are often accused of "putting
the fox in charge of the henhouse"—of giving
someone with a vested interest in an issue
control over how that issue is resolved.
A good example is a president (such as
Barack Obama) who appoints people from Wall
Street to enforce federal regulations intended
to crack down on illegal behavior by Wall
Street's investment community. Needless to
say, you're not likely to get vigorous enforce
ment in that situation.
We have a similar example with Gov. Sonny
Perdue and environmental regulations in
Georgia. Over the past month, the professional
who was in charge of enforcing those rules
has quit, and Perdue has put people in charge
who could benefit from the relaxation of
environmental laws.
The governor has put a whole
pack of foxes in the henhouse,
and before long there may not be
any hens left.
Just over two weeks ago,
Carol Couch very abruptly
resigned as director of the
Environmental Protection Division
(EPD), giving one week's notice
that she was vacating her office.
Perdue moved quickly in announc
ing that Couch's replacement would be Allen
Barnes, an Atlanta attorney.
Couch was a scientist with years of experi
ence in water quality and related environ
mental issues. Although Barnes did work for
a couple of years as a bureaucrat with the
federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
during the George W. Bush administration, his
education and primary work experience are in
the legal profession.
Barnes isn't just any lawyer, either. He was
a partner with King & Spalding, a top-dollar
firm that represents clients whose bottom
line depends on getting favorable decisions
on environmental permits. These clients
include some of the interests who want to
operate a controversial coal-fired power plant
in Washington County. King 8< Spalding also
provides services for clients involved in the
tri-state proceedings over the allocation of
water from Lake Lanier.
Perdue made sure Barnes has some support
when these sensitive environmental permits
come to his attention. Three weeks before
installing Barnes as EPD director, Perdue
appointed another King & Spalding partner,
Dwight Davis, to the state Board of Natural
Resources.
It's part of a pattern for the governor.
Over the past few years, environmental activ
ists such as Pierre Howard and Jim Butler
have been removed from the Board of Natural
Resources while developers and resource
extractors have assumed more control.
"To have balance you have to have
^ other voices, and those voices just
aren't there," said an attorney
involved in the court battles over
air quality permits. "There's no
way in hell coal plant permits are
going to be denied."
After the natural resources
board confirmed his appointment
as EPD director, I asked Barnes if
he saw any potential conflicts of
interest stemming from the connec
tions between his old law firm and its
clients who will ask Barnes' agency for pollu
tion permits.
"I really don't," he replied.
Just to be sure, I asked, will you abstain
from any decisions involving environmental
permits for King & Spalding clients? He said
he would "go through a very thoughtful and
deliberative process" with the agency's attor
ney about that. .
Maybe Perdue is correct in assuming that
an Atlanta law firm representing some of the
state's biggest corporate interests can resolve
Georgia's pressing environmental issues. But
if you want to have clean air to breathe and
clean water to drink, you have reason to be
worried.
Tom Crawford
Tilt MMItM WGILI
JOE
& HARRY
STARRING THE MOST
IMPORTANT POLITICIAN
IN ALL OF HUMAN HISTORY.
JOE LIEBERMAN
A PUBLIC OPTION WHICH
excuses participation
BY ANY CARBON-BASED
un form?
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ya kno*i joe, i've
OFTEN TOLD PEOPLE THAT
YOU'RE “WTTH DEMOCRATS
ON EVERYTHING BUT
THE WAR."
SO X'M PROPOSING A
PUBLIC OPTION—
by TOW TOMORROW
DON'T WORRY.' ITS A
WATERED-DOWN VERSION
WTTH AN "OPT-OUT‘‘
PROVISION !
DID X MENTION THAT
TOUR INSURANCE INDUSTRY
BACKERS WILL LIKELY BE
THE ONES ADMINISTER-
A PUBLIC OPTION?
WELL—WHAT ABOUT A
PUBLIC OPTION WITH A
“CROSSED OUR FINGERS
BEHIND OUR BACKS So ft
DOESN'T REALLY COUNT
CLAUSE?
A PUBLIC OPTION ONLYl
AVAR-ABLE ON THE SECOND
TUESDAY IN MARCH DURIN6
ALTERNATE LEAP iEARS'!
OKAY, OKAY—A PUBLIC
OPTION REQUIRING DEM
OCRATS TO APOLOGIZE
PRofUSELT For not
SUPPORTING JOE LIEBER
MAN IN 2006.
8JT JOON 'MtHCAFTR.
T—YOU’RE STILL SOIN6
G A DIM BEST
OVER AND OVER
OVER AGAIN.
NOVEMBER 4,2009 • FLAGPOLE.COM 5
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