Student Health Services is facing budget cuts for the coming academic year, laying off one physician assistant and decreasing hours for other in-house providers of medical services, according to Jayne Jordan, director of medical services.
The department was told to cut their budget by $125,000 for the next academic year, according to Jordan. Staff at Student Health Services were told by administrators that this cut is just one element of an in-depth look at the finances of departments across the university, Jordan said.
The cuts could lead to 45 fewer medical appointments available per week, though Jordan noted that the department is working to adjust services to accommodate the budget cuts. Without adjustments to how services are offered, students “would experience longer waiting times for appointments” and staff “would have to cram more students into less available time,” Jordan said.
For the first time in more than 10 years, the health services fee will not go up for the next academic year. The $370 fee is paid each semester by every on-campus undergraduate student enrolled in six or more credits and by graduate students who wish to have access to health services.
Student Health Services brought in $6,474,630 in revenue from student health fees for the 2017-2018 academic year. The fee was paid by 8,917 students for the fall 2017 semester and 8,582 in the spring 2018 semester, according to Amy Malsin, a spokesperson for the university.
That year, the budget for Student Health Services, which includes salaries and supplies, came to $3,612,498, according to Malsin. An additional expense of $303,284 went toward rent and overhead in 2016- 2017, according to a report written by Student Health Services.
In total, health services fees brought in $2,558,848 that was unaccounted for in Student Health Services’ overall budget.
At a town hall on university finances in October 2017, Tokumbo Shobowale, chief operating officer, told attendees that Student Health Services “is not fully self-sustaining.”
“The total cost of the service and renting the space, all in, is more than the amount that is charged” through Student Health Services fees, Shobowale said at the town hall.
In a March 2018 interview, Shobowale noted that there are indirect costs contributing to the cost of operating Student Health Services. “We can calculate the direct cost of salaries, band-aids, whatever is directly in the center. What’s not included in there is the cost of renting the space of 80 5th Ave., for example, or the insurance to cover the activities there,” Shobowale said.
Shobowale also said that the operating budget and student fees for Student Health Services would remain the same “for the moment.”
In a May 2018 email, Shobowale also noted other expenses, including utilities, compensation of Student Success staff who support health services, and central services such as human resources, information technology, and maintenance.
The medical services office at the university is currently staffed by two part-time physicians, two full-time physician assistants, two part-time physician assistants, a full-time midwife providing gynecological care, and one registered nurse.
In July, one current part-time physician assistant will leave their position and will not be replaced. At the same time, one of the part-time physicians will halve their hours.
“Our goal is to enhance the services we provide students to best meet our community’s wide variety of needs. With that in mind, we continually look at ways to optimize the resources that support the mental and physical health and wellness of our students. As part of this process, we have reallocated funds to deliver critical resources and services that most impact our community,” Shobowale wrote.
Medical services treats “any issue you would see your primary care provider or GYN provider for,” Jordan said. Health services does not charge students for tests that can be done in-house, such as rapid strep and mono test and pregnancy tests. An outside group comes in twice a week to provide free HIV tests. Students who express financial need can receive some antibiotics and other medications from the department at no cost, though vaccines do require payment.
The medical department is in the process of finding physician assistants in training at Long Island University to take supervised shifts in the department. Staff are also looking at expanding walk-in hours, which are currently one hour each weekday.
Annie Hoberg, a Parsons fashion design sophomore, uses student health services for counseling and medical needs. The first time Hoberg sought medical services on campus, she visited a nearby clinic but spent hours in the waiting room.
“So the next time I got sick, I used the walk-in hours at health services, and I was seen in fifteen minutes,” Hoberg said. For students seeking non-urgent medical appointments outside of walk-in hours, the wait time is about a week, according to Jordan.
Because the health center doesn’t bill insurance providers for appointments, they aren’t driven to see as many students as possible, as quickly as possible. “We’re not churning out the numbers,” Jordan said. “If we need to take our time, and take an hour with a student, we can do that.”
Medical staff offer and facilitate referrals and, with patient consent, connect with counseling services, Student Support and Crisis Management, advisors, faculty or family.
Students can pay for Aetna health insurance through The New School. For the current academic year, the Aetna plan costs $2,839. Students who have other health insurance can opt out of the Aetna plan. Close to 45 percent of students purchased the Aetna plan for the current academic year, according to Malsin, the university spokesperson.
“You can have any insurance, no insurance,” Jordan said. “The only requirement is that you paid the student health fee.” Lab tests or referrals to outside services require insurance.
According to Jordan, the cost of the Aetna health insurance plan for students “is kept down, in part, because we function as a gatekeeper.” Professor Sherry Glied, dean of NYU Wagner and a former health policy advisor for presidents Bush and Clinton, said that Aetna health care premiums would increase if university health services, including counseling, were substantially reduced. The primary care services offered at the student health center are “relatively inexpensive,” but counseling services could contribute a substantial cost, according to Glied.
In a typical semester, roughly 25 percent of students use student health services, according to Michelle Relyea, senior vice president for student success. “I get, at the beginning of the year, probably a couple dozen students who say ‘I live down the street, my doctor is down the street, I’m never going to use health services, do I have to pay the fee?’” Relyea said. “There’s all kinds of different models out there,” Relyea said. “Would [students] rather pay one fee?” asked Relyea. “[Or] would they rather be in control of what they’re spending?”
In the past decade, Jordan has seen Student Health Services steadily expand.
“I’ve really seen [Student Health Services] grow, not suddenly, but little by little, over time,” Jordan said. “And now seems to be a period [of] rethinking, and some contraction.”
Illustration by Ashlie Juarbe
Anna is the Features Editor for the Free Press. She is a senior at Lang, majoring in Journalism + Design and minoring in Politics.
