The doctor is in

If college is one thing, it’s expensive. The majority of us will graduate with some accumulated debt no matter how much we try to avoid it. With the cost of tuition, books, housing and food, every additional cost tacked on is another headache.

It seems a lot of students hold grievances with the mandatory health service fee in particular. For those of us who already have insurance, this added program may appear pointless. But if you look a little closer, this fee includes a lot of valuable student kickbacks.

At $230 per quarter, it’s important to try to get your money’s worth. Mandatory student health fees are a common practice among most universities across the United States.

It is conducive to look at it like any other charge to your college account. You wouldn’t spend $500 on books and never even crack their spines or turn a page. We have to pay for health services regardless, so let’s stop complaining and utilize this wonderful resource that we have available to us.

Portland State lays claim to one of the best university health centers in the Northwest. With primary health care services, dental care, counseling and psychological services provided by a large, knowledgeable team of doctors, nurses, dentists and counselors, it’s ridiculous for us to not take advantage of it.

Chances are, over the course of your education at PSU, you will inevitably get sick. The Student Health and Counseling Center provides greatly reduced prices for medical care for the most common sicknesses and injuries.

Our system works because it is supported by every student it ensures service to. We each pay a set amount, which is relatively low compared to most basic insurance plans, and therefore we’re all able to benefit from it. Were this basic coverage only offered by choice, those of us who chose to opt in would be met with a drastically increased price. We all pay in so we can all reap the rewards.

As it stands, students do not have an option to opt out of the health service fee, even if they have insurance provided by another carrier. If it’s truly a matter of not wanting to pay for two forms of insurance, perhaps dropping your regular coverage or altering its plan while you are attending PSU is the appropriate solution.

All PSU students enrolled in a minimum of five non-self-support course credits are automatically covered. Self-support credits, which are generally extended studies, do not count toward a student’s enrollment status, and student fees such as the health fee.

Aside from the benefits of lowered expenses for physician’s office visits, hospitalization, surgery and lab work, we are provided with a growing number of other health services that are included in our basic fee.

SHAC offers great educational programs and workshops. Over the school year they host campus events that educate students with supplemental material and lectures on how to have a happy and healthy college experience.

If you take a trip over to SHAC, there are ample opportunities to receive free nutritional and dietary counseling from their licensed dietitian. Learning how to maintain a healthy lifestyle during this physically and mentally stressful time in out lives in a vital part of succeeding in college.

But the stress of college isn’t something we have to force ourselves to deal with on our own. Included in our coverage are free hours of psychiatric counseling. On top of this, SHAC has recently made it even easier for us to seek support.

Alongside their traditional scheduled one-on-one counseling appointments, SHAC now offers completely free, spur of the moment consultations and support for any PSU student. Held Monday through Thursday in off-site locations scattered all around the PSU campus, walk-in consultations are available to anyone looking for help dealing with their stress.

Whether you find yourself struggling with academic demands, family or relationship issues, depression, financial woes or simply feel like you need someone to talk to, there is help just steps away. SHAC is able to facilitate personal and confidential meetings to ease your tension and help redirect your focus in a positive direction. A list of locations and walk-in hours can be found at SHAC’s main location on Southwest 6th Avenue and Hall Street.

Our student health fee also covers assistance with sexual-health counseling and birth control, making it easy for all PSU students to play it smart and safe. This includes greatly reduced prices on woman’s health care and STI screenings, along with a pharmacy stocked with contraceptives and various birth-control options.

Maybe the extra fee is a pain for some. But when you weigh the positives against the negatives I think you’ll find that if you want to be health conscious and receive phenomenal care during your time at PSU, our basic student health plan is well worth the money.

Realistically, we are being exposed to a massive variety of services at a low price that we will rarely see again after college. Take advantage of what we have provided to us and don’t let your basic coverage go to waste.