Out of 20 to 30 Marshallese students attending UH Hilo, only 3 to 5 students have health insurance. Students cannot afford health insurance because it is expensive, and even with the financial support from the RMI scholarship, it is not enough to cover the needs for medical expenses. The RMI scholarship states in its Handbook that they would pay insurance directly to the school, but lately we have not seen this take place. Students have tried applying for free health insurance, but are turned down because they were ineligible. With the lack of health insurance, students depend on drug stores instead of actually seeing a doctor, and when time of emergencies arrives, it can be a huge problem. The scholarship board can provide more safety for the students by implementing health insurance paid by other education funds. By implementing a health insurance for students, the scholarship board will show how concerned and supportive they are for the Marshallese students studying abroad. It will give a good name to the board and office on how supportive they are about the health and success of their students.
I proposed that RMI scholarship implement health insurance for students Marshallese students attending UH, Hilo. They can pay directly to the school or HMSA like they promised.
