Month: June 2019

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Accessing HealthCare

Navigating healthcare can be tricky, here is a break down on how to access affordable healthcare and coverage plans

Oregon Health Plan

What is it?

  • The Oregon Health Plan (OHP) provides health care coverage for Oregonians from all walks of life. This includes working families, children, pregnant women, single adults and seniors.

Benefits?

  • Physical health: Doctor visits, preventive services to help you stay healthy, tests to find out about your health, treatment for most major diseases, emergency ambulance and 24-hour emergency care, family planning services, and pregnancy and newborn care.
  • Behavioral health: Mental health and counseling, and help with addiction to tobacco, alcohol and drugs. (You do not need a referral from your primary care provider for these services.)
  • Dental health: Cleanings and preventive treatments, dental check-ups and x-rays, fillings, tooth removal, 24-hour emergency care.
  • Prescriptions: OHP with Limited Drug only includes drugs not covered by Medicare Part D.
  • Eye care: Medical care; glasses to treat a qualifying medical condition such as aphakia or keratoconus, or after cataract surgery.
  • Vision care: Exams and glasses (only for pregnant women and children under age 21).
  • Other needs: OHP can pay for hearing aids, medical equipment, home health care, skilled therapy, hospital care, and rides to health care appointment

Who is eligible/can apply

  • To get OHP, individuals must meet certain income and asset requirements and other non-financial eligibility requirements such as residency and citizenship/alien status.
  • CAWEM is an emergency only coverage that you can only use in a hospital ER visit, typically those who are undocumented are eligible to receive this kind of Medicaid
  • Those who are pregnant and meet income eligibility
  • Immigrant children and teens younger than 19 who meet income and other criteria. This includes youth with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)

How to apply and where to get help with the application process

  • One can apply online through the Oregon Health Plan website
  • There are multiple health navigator trained to help people apply, those in you area can be found online at OHPHelp 

Free clinics around Linn-Benton County

  • Linn-Benton County department
  • By using the website Freeclinics.com it is possible to search nearby income based clinics within your area

Student Health Services

  • Options at OSU:
    • Student health fees covering some services
    • Insurance through SHS partnership with PacificSource and The First Health Network
  • Student fees covers:
    • Visits with SHS psychiatrist (with referral from SHS clinician)
    • Most office visits (excludes all lab work or procedures)
    • Nutrition consults with a registered dietitian
    • Health coaching services
    • Access to health and wellness web resources, including Healthier at School® Online Self-Care Guide
    • Health promotion outreach programming and events
    • Nurse advice by phone, 24 hours a day, seven days a week
    • Toll-free long distance access to Student Health (1-877-824–9355)

Other options

  • Co-pay/payment plans/appealing payment:
    • Some hospitals will offer payment forgiveness when submitting an application that demonstrates the financial burden of the medical cost
    • There are payment plans one can set in place to help reduce financial burdens and do not always build interest
    • Co-payments allow for a percent of your visit be covered by you insurance provider or the hospital and a percentage comes out of your pocket
  • Sponsorship: There are some specific illnesses that have non-profit organizations in which they can help with your bills costs for example We Care and Can offers financial support related to healthcare cost to people in need.

*Most of this information was found online at OHP

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My experience as a new member in the HSRC team!

Human services resource center (HSRC) is located in Champinefu Lodge at the Oregon State University. I first came to know about the HSRC when my roommate told me that “There’s this awesome place that puts money in your student card for food.” I went onto their website and learned that not only with food insecurity but HSRC helps people with textbooks, housing, and other facilities like free laundry, showers and printing etc.

Being a student, especially an international student, it is very hard to take care of yourself while dealing with the school stress. There’s so many students who just eat one meal and get through the day with that. One thing I learned throughout my time in OSU is that taking care of your health is more important than anything. Nobody should skip their meals to buy course materials; but unfortunately, we all do for our own reasons.

I always wanted to work at a place that helps people making their lives a little easier. I was searching a lot, and then I found out HSRC had a job opening. I knew this was it. I was always so impressed by the HSRC team and what they did for students and the OSU community. I applied for the job as  Textbook Lending Program Coordinator and got this job after going through an in-person interview.

The first person I met here was Erica. She was one of the GTA’s who worked with us and guide our way. After my first interaction with Erica, I knew working at the HSRC was going to be a great experience. She introduced me to the awesome team we have here, and gave me a full tour of the place. Each one of our team members welcomed me as if they knew me from earlier. They all were so welcoming and made sure I was comfortable and all settled here. I love asking questions and for my luck, people here at the HSRC love helping you with any concerns too. The work place is highly open for new ideas and our boss makes sure we all are heard and gives us the required feedback. We have staff meetings every other week where we discuss every possible work related agenda, and where we give our feedback to our boss on how things are working overall. I believe these meetings are a great way to discuss any negatives, or positives happening at our workplace. Other than that, we have one-to-one interactions with one of our GTAs every other week. In these conversations we can talk about anything work related or our personal lives. These interactions helped me a lot to lower my school stress and to ask any random questions about work.

Overall, my first term working at the HSRC has been great. I learned a lot about our food pantry, textbook program, SNAP program and all the other amazing services that we have here. I love our team, and their enthusiasm to help others. I am looking forward to my time here in the coming terms.