UIC students likely to see health insurance rate increase

Students at the University of Illinois at Chicago will see their health insurance rates jump by 21 percent this fall if college trustees approve the increase at a regularly scheduled meeting this week.

On Thursday, the University of Illinois Board of Trustees is expected to approve the increase, along with other changes in students’ health care coverage, to comply with federal Affordable Care Act reforms.

As a result, the UIC campus plan, called CampusCare, will eliminate caps on prescription drugs and lifetime benefit limits, among other changes, according to a proposal that the board of trustees will consider at their meeting in Urbana.

The changes will boost UIC students’ health insurance rates by 21 percent, to $570 annually starting with the fall 2015 semester.

Students are automatically assessed the student health insurance fee, but they can opt out if they show evidence of other insurance coverage — such as through a parent’s employer, for example.

The university’s three campuses — at Chicago, Urbana-Champaign and Springfield — have their own, separate health insurance coverage, though all require approval by the trustees.

Springfield campus students also are slated to see their rates go up 21 percent, to $495 annually starting this fall, largely because of a lower numbers of students who participate in the plan, according to the proposal.

At the main campus at Urbana-Champaign, the health insurance rate is slated to drop by about 2 percent, to $286 for undergraduates and to $370 for graduate students, after competitive bidding resulted in a new insurance provider offering a better deal than in the past.