Health

10 HE ALTH • Fall 2021 • By Sloane M. Perron As premiums spiked and enrollment dropped, Mass. is phasing out its SHIP PA in the hopes of making healthcare easier for college students T he world of health insurance is oftentimes difficult to navigate. Co-pays, in-network doctors, out- of-network procedures, and premi- ums can be hard to figure out, especially if you are a young col- lege student unfamiliar with healthcare coverage. The Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP) has provided health insurance to Massachusetts students for decades, while its more recent Student Health Insurance Plan Premium Assistance (SHIP PA) program helped control pre- mium costs. However, declining student participants and rising premium costs led to the elimination of SHIP PA. While this change succeeded in reduc- ing the confusion associated with stu- dent health insurance, it highlighted the misinformation long surrounding this state program. "It is complicated. These poor stu- dents would just be confused," said Beth Auger, Quinsigamond Community College director of financial compli- ance, about trying to figure out insur- ance coverage prior to the state's deci- sion to eliminate the SHIP PA portion of the SHIP program. SHIP and SHIP PA Since 1989, Massachusetts has required every student enrolled in higher education to be covered by health insurance. This state law man- dates every higher education institu- tion – public and private – must offer their full-time and part-time students access to their college's version of SHIP or accept an insurance meeting state insurance standards. This program allows students who can obtain insurance through their par- ents or their work to retain their current insurance while offering students who cannot afford insurance, the ability to receive access to health care. During the 2016-2017 school year, MassHealth introduced the SHIP PA program to allow MassHealth-eligible students the ability to still receive their MassHealth benefits while also enroll- ing in SHIP for additional coverage. The purpose of the PA program was to cover the premium and out-of-pocket insurance costs for full-time students, making the insurance plan cost the same as an equivalent MassHealth plan. All public colleges and universities use Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts as their main insurer, while private colleges are able to select other insurance companies meeting state standards. As a result, students taking part in the PA program would end up with two different insurance plans: their student health insurance (BCBS or another insurer through a pri- vate college) as their primary and MassHealth as their secondary. What began as a way to control pre- mium costs while providing quality health insurance benefits to students resulted in confusion for both students PHOTOS/COURTESY OF QUINSIGAMOND COMMUNITY COLLEGE Eliminating the confusion of student health insurance Quinsigamond Community College has 153 students enrolled in SHIP.

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