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U.Va.
To Propose Health Insurance Subsidy For Graduate Assistants April 12, 2001-- As part of the University of Virginia's proposed budget for 2001-02, administrators will recommend a $900 annual subsidy for nearly 2,000 graduate students to help cover the cost of their health insurance. U.Va.'s Board of Visitors will consider the budget at its June 15-16 meeting. The subsidy would apply to teaching and research assistants who earn at least $5,000 per year for their academic work and to other graduate students whose fellowships are $5,000 or above. This is close to 60 percent of the graduate students in engineering, architecture, nursing, basic medical sciences, education, and arts and sciences. "I am delighted that we may be able to offer this benefit to our graduate assistants," said U.Va. Provost Peter W. Low. "Members of my staff have been working with the deans, graduate-student representatives and others for nearly a year to find a way to address this issue. The approach they have developed is an important step in our efforts to deal with the under-funding of our graduate programs at the University." The $900 stipend would cover next year's estimated cost of health insurance for a single student in the basic (White) plan offered by QualChoice through Student Health. Alternatively, graduate students could apply the stipend toward the expanded-benefit Orange plan or family coverage, if they choose. Low said the annual cost to U.Va. would be approximately $1.8 million, which would come from earnings on the University unrestricted endowment, indirect cost recoveries from research grants, tuition, and fellowship funds. Contact: Louise Dudley, (804) 924-1400 |
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