Monday, February 28, 2005
But wait, there's more
Yes, there is more to love about this health fee. After all, even if it is ripping us off, it's still helping us, right?
Nope. Here's a list of what the student fee will buy us. It's bad enough that most of the "things-to-accomplish" are vague and likely to not mean any significant benefit. But make sure you read to the bottom:
Allocations are based on student demand as indicated by student surveys and health care utilization data. These allocations may change annually, based on input from an independent student health advisory committee.
Ah, yes, the mystical committee again, this time with complete control over the fees. After all, whenever something needs to get done, a committee makes sure it gets done. Right? I mean, just look at all those examples of committees accomplishing great things on campus, such as... uh... um... making us pay a health fee? Check out this guarantee, answering the question of How do I know the fee will really improve health services?
The referendum requires that a student health advisory committee be formed, to oversee use of the fee money. This committee will work with health services officials to ensure that fee revenues are allocated to best meet students’ health care needs.
That's it. "You want better services? Give us money, and then we'll form a committee." That's their grand solution.
Moving right along, let's just suppose, for the sake of argument, that throwing money at this will improve health services. It still seems pretty unlikely that there'll actually be more money available for these services. Providing directed fees gives the university that much more incentive to yank general funding, so we can expect that, after all of our extra fees, there won't actually be any more money available for health services.
But wait! Doesn't the referendum guarantee that this won't happen?
The fee is intended to supplement but not supplant the portion of UC Berkeley’s Registration Fee income currently allocated to University Health Services, Tang Center.
Once again, that is the complete extent of the guarantee. "We don't really want it to happen." Oh, sure, that'll protect funding. It says so right in the Fine Print:
This referendum states that funds would be used to supplement but not supplant current campus funding for University Health Services. Students understand this to mean that passage of this fee would not result in a targeted reduction to the portion of UC Berkeley’s Registration Fee presently allocated to University Health Services, Tang Center.
Well, if students understand it that way, it's sure to go exactly that way. Just ask the Multi-Cultural Center folks.
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