“It doesn’t mean there wouldn’t be an increase in the premium, but it would be less than it would be otherwise,” Moon said. “Whereas with Blue Cross Blue Shield, if there’s a surplus of what’s paid in premiums relative to the cost of the plan, Blue Cross retains all of that.”

In addition to the reinvested surplus premiums, Moon said under a self-funded model, the UNC System would not have to pay the state premium tax that fully-funded plans have to pay.

A feasibility study conducted by Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. was presented at a Nov. 7 meetings of the task force. This report projected the savings under a self-funded student health insurance plan could be achieved $5 million to $30 million in the first five years.

“The Gallagher presentation and analysis assume the same benefit design [Student Blue currently offers],” Moon said. “So, it showed the potential for reduced costs relative to fully-insured, even with the same plan design.”

Harini Somanchi, co-director of the Department of Student Wellness and Safety in Student Government, said she thinks there has been a lot of concern at UNC specifically about a tiered funding model suggested in the Gallagher reportwhich would instate different premium rates for different schools in the UNC System.

“That is definitely a concern for UNC because we have a larger population of graduate and professional students at our schools than a lot of other UNC System public schools,” he said.

She too mentioned concerned about a suggestion in the Gallagher report that would mandate enrollment in University-provided student health insurance for international students, who tend to have lower claims costs.

Currently, the only potential transition to self-funding being seriously discussed is for student health insurance, Moon saidwhich would not include the plans provided for graduate student research and teaching assistants.

Co-pays and deductibles will not change as a direct result of the proposed transition, Moon said. She said in a follow-up email statement that students would not necessarily see changes in the providers that are covered in-network as a result of the transition.

Somanchi said she is currently working on increasing awareness of the proposal and receiving student feedback about their insurance needs.

“When we go into the Campus Health Advisory Board meetings or go into meetings with the [BOG]we want to make sure that all student opinions are being represented,” she said.

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