Dr. Bill Purdy, executive director of Student Health, gave an update on Student Health policies at the Graduate and Professional Student Council’s meeting Tuesday night.
Purdy discussed the possibility of a partially self-funded health insurance system at Duke that would be backed by a larger insurance company, such as BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina. This system would provide students with a recognizable plan and better benefits at a manageable cost, he said. Students questioned this option when Purdy opened up the floor, but he assured them that nothing is set in stone.
“Duke has a little money tucked away, but we want to make sure this would work [before we implement it],” he said.
The University, which used to offer students a health insurance plan through BCBS of N.C., switched last September to a plan provided by UnitedHealthcare StudentResources. Since then, the new insurance provider has received some poor reviews from students.
Purdy encouraged students to join the Student Health Advisory Council, especially if they want a say in Duke’s student health insurance reform.
“I’d rather hear about it from the students,” he said, adding that there has been a lot of talk recently about student health insurance and that Student Health is aware of the concerns.
Purdy said he hopes students will be able to use Duke’s student health insurance nationally.
“We want you to be able to take a card with you that’s recognized almost wherever you go,” he said.
Purdy also told students there have been more than 500 official cases of the flu reported at Duke, and vaccinations for both the seasonal flu and the H1N1 virus, commonly known as swine flu, will soon be made available to the student population. The seasonal flu vaccine will be available Oct. 7 in the Bryan Center from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Purdy said he does not yet know when the swine flu vaccine will become available.
“We could get just 24 hours notice, but there will be more than enough issued to us to cover all students,” he said.
In other business:
GPSC addressed the name of the graduate and professional student section in Wallace Wade Stadium. At its last meeting, the GPSC general assembly voted to send the name “G-Spot” to the Executive Board for discussion. The Executive Board found that the name disenfranchised professional students and had connotations that hindered the family-friendly environment of the stadium. The Executive Board instead proposed the name “The G&P Spot,” which passed at Tuesday’s meeting.
The Finance Committee allocated $17,290 of its $17,500 fall budget to student groups, a distribution which the General Assembly unanimously passed. Not all of the groups, however, are affiliated with GPSC, so the council might find itself keeping more of its budgeted funds. GPSC Treasurer Emeline Aviki, a student in Fuqua and the School of Medicine, led the discussion on the budget and described how the committee allocated funds to organizations that have both undergraduate and graduate and professional student members.
“We looked at the percent of graduate or professional students expected to participate in an event, and we allocated funds accordingly,” Aviki said.
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Correction. This article has been updated to include the following information: The seasonal flu vaccine will be available on Oct. 7, not Oct. 8 as originally reported.
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