Editor in chief: Tim Pyle
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Republican
lawmakers
in Salem are
out of line in
attempts to
cut low
income
students
from the
Oregon
Health Plan
D
id you hear the one about
the college student who
became sickly ill, then
had to drop out of school
because she didn’t have proper
health insurance?
Sorry, there is no punch line be
cause that potential scenario is no
joke.
In fact, if Republican lawmakers
in Salem have their way and elimi
nate low-income students from the
Oregon Health Plan, the above
script will likely become a common
occurrence.
The GOP says it can save the
state about $3.4 million by yank
ing coverage from 1,700 students.
To be eligible for the OHP, a stu
dent must be uninsured, meet the
plan’s income requirements and
also qualify for a Pell Grant,
which puts that person pretty
low on the income scale. Individ
uals must earn no more than a
three-month average of $687 per
month, based on the month they
apply and the two previous
months. A family of three is al
lowed to make a measly $1,157.
Cutting health access for this
group is like operating without
anesthesia: it’s definitely going to
hurt like hell.
Do you wanna know the truly
sneaky aspect behind this whole
idea? The legislators waited until
spring term ended, when most
students had either already gradu
ated or put their brains on autopi
lot for the summer, before they
announced the cuts. Talk about
pulling a fast one.
In addition to a backstabbing
approach, at least one politician
took a patronizing tone with the
issue and its intended victims.
Sen. Eileen Qutub, (R-Beaverton),
chairwoman of the Human Re
sources Subcommittee of the Joint
Ways and Mean Committee, said
last week, “[Students] just are a
less-vulnerable population. They
get riled up real quick because
they’re young and can be easily
influenced.”
You know, if the state
Legislature had fewer /
extraneous subcommittees for
every damn suspicious-sounding
committee, maybe there would be
more money in the budget.
Students have a few do-good
ers working for the status quo.
Gov. John Kitzhaber wants to
keep students on the plan, ac
cording to Mark Gibson, policy
adviser for health care and hu
man resources. Also, Oregon
Student Association representa
tives are speaking their mind
while encouraging others to do
the same. Last Wednesday, OSA
held a press conference in Salem
with speakers from three differ
ent state schools.
“This could be forcing [stu
dents] to choose between com
prehensive health care and their
education,” said Kellie Shoemak
er, legislative director for OSA.
In addition, some Democrats are
standing up to the big baddies from
the dark side.
“Students have to be
eligible for the Pell
Grant, which means
that they are really poor,” said
Rep. Barbara Ross, D-Corvallis.
“They don’t have a lot of re
sources.”
To those who are in the students’
comer, we thank you from the bot
tom of our wallets.
This isn’t the first time stu
dents have been sliced from the
OHP. In 1995, lawmakers carried
out the deed, but strong lobbying
efforts put students back on in
1997.
Now, two years later, it’s dejfi
vu all over again. Frankly, this
on-again, off-again activity is a
little dizzying and quite nauseat
ing.
Don’t worry about us students,
however. We’ll just take two aspirin
and apply for bankruptcy in the
morning.
This editorial represents the opinion of
the Emerald editorial board. Responses
may be sent to
ode@oregon. uoregon .edu.
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Letters to the Editor
CORRECTION
In the July 8 article
“Senate hears
money matters,” it
should have read
“ASUO Vice Presi
dent Mitra
Anoushiravani.”
Qutub off the mark
Statements made by state Sen. Eileen
Qutub in a Register-Guard article on Tues
day, July 6, on students losing coverage un
der the Oregon Health Plan are as out
landish as the policy decision to ax students
themselves.
“They just are a less-vulnerable popula
tion,” Qutub said.
This is simply not true, when one be
comes a student they do not take on super
human characteristics. In fact, we have the
same problems as any other citizen in the
state of Oregon — we get sick, sometimes to
the extreme that it creates a need for care be
yond the capability of our campus or per
sonal resources.
I am glad that she has “nothing against
students,” however, she has proved that
she has absolutely nothing for us either.
Would you attend school if you were a
low-income student with a preexisting
condition that needed special care if there
was no way to receive health coverage?
For many students the answer to this is
no.
As Qutub notes, higher education did
get a lot this session — an expected in
crease in the Oregon University System's
budget and a tuition freeze. These were
long over due, as tuition rose more than
80 percent this decade and funding for
universities dropped, of course we need
ed this budget. That does not justify tak
ing money away from students across the
board, however. Furthermore, we do
have to worry about students enrolled at
community colleges or private institu
tions as well. As the song says, come on
Eileen.
Matt Swanson
State Affairs Coordinator, ASUO
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