DAILY LOBO new mexico
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July 2-8 2012
The Independent Voice of UNM since 1895
Affordable Care Act impacts student premiums by Svetlana Ozden
UNM off icials, students weigh in on Supreme Court ruling that deems act constitutional
sozden@unm.edu
Students who purchase UNM health insurance will bear the cost of increased coverage requirements mandated by President Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act. On June 28, the Supreme Court upheld the Affordable Care Act, a policy passed in March that aims to provide more affordable health care to U.S. citizens. According to the act, health insurance companies can no longer discriminate against people
with pre-existing conditions, will cover the costs of preventative care, such as birth control and mammograms, and will allow students to stay on their parents’ insurance policies until they are 26 years old. At a June 7 meeting, the Board of Regents approved a 22 percent increase in health insurance premium costs and said the hike will ensure that UNM health insurance policies meet the requirements of the new act and pay for the increased coverage insurers must provide. With the approved increase, insurance premiums at UNM
will increase by about $300, to about $1,700 annually. GPSA President Marisa Silva said that despite the increased insurance costs, students will benefit from the act. She said the act will allow many students to stay on their parents’ insurance policies while they’re in school. “Anyone with a medical condition suddenly is able to have coverage, and easing that burden might allow students access to an education,” she said. “I think that it’s going to be a positive thing for most students and it’s a boon to the entire public to not
is unsure whether she is in favor of adopting an expansion program in New Mexico. Young adults can stay on their parents’ health plans until they reach the age of 26, unless they’re already covered through their jobs and their parents’ health plans predate Sept. 23, 2010. Beginning in 2014, insurance companies will no longer be able to deny patients coverage for having pre-existing conditions. Insurance companies will provide coverage for free preventative health care, such as mammograms, wellness visits for seniors, vaccinations, colonoscopies and free birth control. Insurance companies must apply 80 percent of premiums to medical care and quality costs or rebate the
by Svetlana Ozden
uses technology. He said the University is expected to grow and expand, and will have to determine how to best use technology to better make a connection between students and the University. “As we reinvent the University, we will face the challenges from legislators and business communities to have more people be educated,” he said. “The challenge that we have rests … in what we can do to create these new education models, enhance the quality of our student experience, and to make sure that we use it as an engagement tool to make students feel part of the University.”
Medicaid. The federal government would fund 100 percent of expansion costs until 2020, at which time each state would have to pay for 10 percent of the costs. The percentage that states have to pay could continue to rise in the future. A spokesman for Gov. Susana Martinez said she has yet to decide whether to expand the state’s Medicaid program, but told the San Francisco Chronicle Martinez will “proceed in a manner that best protects the safety net for the most vulnerable New Mexicans in a responsible and sustainable manner.”
FROM THE WEB
Highlights of the Supreme Court ruling and the Affordable Care Act: The act aims to ensure health care costs stay low, promote preventative care and hold insurance companies accountable. Beginning in 2014, people who do not purchase health insurance but are financially able to do so will be subject to a tax. The Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of this portion in the bill as part of last week’s ruling. The Supreme Court ruled the federal government cannot impose penalties on states that choose not to expand their Medicaid programs. As outlined in the act, the expansions for each state would be covered by federal dollars until 2020, at which point states would have to start paying 10 percent of expansion costs. Gov. Susana Martinez has said she
have to deal with insurance that can turn you away.” New Mexico has the secondhighest uninsured rate in the nation: roughly 21 percent of New Mexico’s 2.1 million residents are uninsured. The federal government picks up 70 percent of New Mexico’s tab for Medicaid, a government program that provides care to many of those uninsured residents. The Supreme Court decision ruled the federal government could not penalize individual states for not accepting federal dollars to expand their
portion of premium costs that exceed the limit. Medicare-covered benefits will no longer be reduced or eliminated, including the right to choose your doctor. Insurance policies must meet minimum health coverage standards, which may drive the cost of insurance plans up. The UNM Board of Regents approved a 22 percent increase in student health insurance premium costs on June 7, and said the increase is in part due to the regulations outlined in the Affordable Care Act. Insurance policies are no longer required to cover abortion costs. By 2014, insurance companies will no longer be able to impose annual caps on coverage.
We asked students what they thought of the Affordable Care Act on the Daily Lobo’s Facebook page. “It sets a scary precedent. Mandating that we not only have health insurance, and then taxing us for not being able to afford it. While a solution is necessary, this is not it.” — Joshua Huggins “It is a step in the right direction. This isn’t the health care bill we need in our country but we are getting there.” — Molly Austin Rice “This ‘buy health insurance or get taxed’ strong arm game is going to cripple small business. I guess the [U.S. Government] really does want to extinguish the American Dream.” — Chris Pius Forehand
Frank: technology will reduce isolation sozden@unm.edu
Freshmen who don’t return to UNM for their sophomore year often report they felt a lack of connection with the University. At Technology Days 2012, a twoday annual conference about the technology advancements at UNM, University President Robert Frank said that technology is another way the University will improve retention rates. He said improving technology use on campus will allow students to feel more engaged with the University. According to the Enrollment Management Division, students reported feelings of isolation and the impersonal attitudes of the University as two of the reasons students do not return for their sophomore year. According to the division, about 26 percent of students didn’t return for a third semester. “We think that technology is another way that we will create one of those anchors that pulls students into the University that makes them part of us,” he said. “It makes it harder for them to leave the University and makes it more likely for them to graduate in the future.” He said that part of the UNM 2020 plan will reflect how the University
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Daily Lobo volume 116
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LoboMail Information Technologies Manager Linda Johansen said LoboMail is part of an IT initiative to provide an effective email system for students, faculty members and staff. She said the current email system, WebMail, is outdated and that the new system will provide users with larger email storage and improve access to UNM email from portable devices, including iPhones and Androids. Johansen said all folder contents, except for spam and trash folders, will be automatically transferred to the LoboMail system, but that users should check folders to ensure that anything important is transferred
Britney King / Daily Lobo UNM President Robert Frank spoke at Technology Days 2012. At the conference, Frank said that in order to improve student involvement at UNM, the University must improve technology use. over. She said users will still have access to WebMail accounts for a short period of time to ensure that all documents are copied over from WebMail to LoboMail. Johansen said student accounts will be migrated during the summer, while faculty and staff accounts will be completed during the fall semester. She said UNM will fully convert to the LoboMail system by fall 2012.
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Where’s My Bus Information Technologies Manager Richard Valdez said Where’s My Bus is a program that allows users to track bus locations throughout Albuquerque. He said the program is a collaborative effort between UNM IT, Parking and Transportation Services and the city of Albuquerque Open Data Project, an initiative to increase public access to public city data.
Valdez said UNM IT created an online application that includes city bus and UNM bus route information and can be used on a computer or portable device such as a smartphone. He said the city and PATS will fit UNM shuttles with GPS tracking units that will allow the application to track bus locations while en route.
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