Rice University’s Student Newspaper — Since 1916

Wednesday, November 20, 2024 — Houston, TX

Anton Dolmatov


OPINION 11/19/24 10:45pm

Insurance options for Ph.D. students are overpriced and insufficient

Doctoral students at Rice are given insufficient health insurance options especially compared to institutions with graduate student unions. Aetna’s graduate student health insurance plan  leaves students with significant costs compared to the minimum annual stipend. Additionally, the available Aetna plan offers insufficient benefits when compared both to medical insurance plans at peer institutions and to the non-subsidized Wellfleet plan – Rice’s alternative option for international students.