Most students in the University of North Carolina system will be required to have health insurance, beginning in the fall.
The mandate affects students on all 16 university campuses – students at the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, a magnet high school, are exempt – but isn’t the result of the new overhaul of the nation’s health care system. UNC administrators want to ensure that students don’t face unexpected medical bills if they become ill or get injured on campus.
Students who cannot get insurance from another source, such as a family policy, will be automatically enrolled in the UNC system’s insurance plan. Fees for the coverage vary by campus. It will cost $720 a year at North Carolina Central University, $723 at UNC-Chapel Hill and $744 at North Carolina State University.