While some colleges and universities have come under fire for failing to provide adequate health coverage for student-athletes, Dartmouth students injured on the playing field have limited out-of-pocket expenses due to aid from the Dartmouth Student Group Health Plan and funding from the athletic department.
The DSGHP, offered to all Dartmouth students, contains provisions that cover athletes who become injured while taking part in any College sport including both club and varsity teams.
At many other institutions, student health plans do not guarantee coverage for athletic injuries. Claims are often only accepted if the cost of treatment is deemed customary and reasonable, according to an athletic trainer at Swarthmore College, which competes in NCAA Division III. The trainer wished to be unnamed so as to not jeopardize her employment with Swarthmore.
Northwestern University's student health insurance plan does not cover injuries sustained during athletic activity, said Christopher Johnson, director of risk management at Northwestern. If student-athletes are injured at Northwestern, a fund in the athletic department covers the cost of the treatment.
Athletic injuries at Harvard University are not covered by the university health care plan either. Unlike Dartmouth and Northwestern, Harvard does not offer compensation or aid for students' out-of-pocket costs. According to Harvard Health Services' web site, if a student is injured while taking part in athletic activity, "Covering the cost of treatments, medical tests and the prescriptions is your responsibility, not the athletic department's."
Dartmouth student-athletes are encouraged to enroll in the DSGHP because it allows them to receive medical attention from many local health care providers, according to executive associate athletic director Brian Austin.
The DSGHP is self-funded, according to Stephen Beckley, ex-officio technical advisor and president of Hodgkins Beckley Consulting. Beckley's firm advises the committee in charge of the DSGHP. The only circumstance in which athletic injuries are not covered under the plan is when student-athletes are also engaged in professional sports and sustain injuries during professional play, Beckley said.
The Dean of the College's Office makes a point to inform the guardians of incoming students that waiving enrollment in the DSGHP can be dangerous, according to associate Dean of the College Gordon Taylor. Often, private insurance companies refuse to cover costs associated with injuries sustained through participation in varsity athletics, he said.
"We rub it in the parents' face that this is a financial risk," Taylor said.
The plan guarantees an annual maximum out-of-pocket expense of $1,000 and a maximum lifetime benefit of $1 million. For students who carry insurance from a private company as well as the DSGHP, the latter bridges the gap between an athlete's primary insurance and the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Catastrophic Injury Insurance Program, which provides coverage for injuries that cost more than $75,000.
In addition to the protection provided by the College's insurance plan, the athletic department maintains a fund that draws on annual grants from the NCAA. This fund is designed to alleviate financial stress by helping to pay for most out-of-pocket costs for students enrolled in the DSGHP and half of the costs accumulated by those athletes who choose to remain insured by private companies, head athletic trainer Jeff Frechette said in an interview with The Dartmouth. Student-athletes who need funding are encouraged to apply to be reimbursed, but funds are limited and are largely distributed on a first-come, first-serve basis, he said.
Varsity baseball player Jake Pruner '11 sustained an injury to his elbow last summer, visited multiple doctors and went through surgery in March. Though he was not enrolled in the DSGHP, he said he was reimbursed for half of his expenses through the athletic department's fund.
