April 7, 2003

| Participate in the
2003 University Report Card

2003

University Report Card

Here's your chance to have your say.

Rally with students from across the country and tell us about
life at your university - the good, the bad and the ugly.

Visit studentawards.com
and register today!

Make sure your voice is heard on important issues concerning
your university. Plus also get instant access to free scholarship
information and a chance to win a $5000 scholarship’.

“Registration on studentawards.com is mandatory for participation in the
University Report Gard. Registration does not guarantee participation in
the University Report Card survey. Survey is done by random selection.

Austin Nairn

Photographers
Dana Schwehr, Caria Pasman,

Stephanie Wilson Rob Miller, Deanna Danskin

Culture Editor
Kathleen De Vere

The Production Assistant
Becky Booth

Contributors

Megan Mcinnes, Helen Yu, Ken
Janzen, Michaei Stephenson,
Jeremy Stewart, Johan Boyden,
Rob L.

Columnists:
Dan Turner, Natalie Tamosiunas -

Cartoonists
: Josh Hammenstadt,

Page 2

The Student Works
Experience

A retrospective look at the first year of the
NUGSS Health and Dental Plan

By Andrea Larson

In October 2001, students at the
University of Northern British
Columbia voted to implement an
extended medical plan for under-
graduate students. This plan was
designed to provide affordable
extended health and dental plan
for those students who did not
have any alternative coverage.
All full-time students are auto-
matically enrolled in the program
and those who already have cov-
erage have the ability to opt out
and have their money refunded.

The provider that was chosen
for this endeavour was student-
care.net/ works, one of the largest

providers of student health plans -

in Canada. Services provided by

studentcare.net/works included
and on-campus kiosk to provide
front-line service and support to
students, plan information and
downloadable forms in online
format among other services.

Approximately 51.4% of the
undergraduates at UNBC actual-
ly participated in the plan while
the other half of the student pop-
ulation had the ability to opt out
of the plan.

This far the premiums paid to
studentcare outweigh the amount
paid out in claims with an aver-
age loss ratio of 45% for health
claims and 50% for dental claims.
Despite the fact that on average
students are paying more into the
plan than they have received

back, many students have
expressed a positive response to
the plan. In a phone survey of
1500 students studentcare found
that there was an overall positive
response to the health and dental
plan. ;

NUGSS also seems quite happy
with their choice of insurance
brokers. The Director of External
Affairs, Johan Boyden, was a part
of the board that selected student-
care, and is “very happy stu-
dents are actually using the plan;
overall, I think it is one of the
most valuable services NUGSS
provides.”

NUGSS Health & Dental Plan:

Students Enrolled.
In Person Opt outs
Internet Opt outs

Enrolment 2002-03

800

Official publishing nba _

of students at the —
University of Northern
British Columbia. As
such we are required to
report on issues of
interest to students in
the Northern Region.

| We can be reached by

several methods as out-
lined below and encour-
age all students, both —

| those on ie. main cam-

Over The Edge is
part of the Canadian
University Press net-
work of papers, other-
wise known as CUP.
CUP is an organisa-

tion that is entirely

red by member

Bose merce

4000 1200 1400

Phone: (250) 960-5633
Fax: (250) 960-5407

E-mail:

over-the-edge @ unbc.ca

Address:

Over The Edge
3333 University Way
Prince George, BC
V2N 429