Adam Lovgren, COGS vice president of graduate student wellness, said human resources officials were “cautiously optimistic” when he presented them with the health insurance proposal, as well as the results of a recent COGS graduate student health survey.

“They seemed positive about working together with us to improve benefits for students and reduce costs and to see if they can have a structured plan with everyone having the same level of coverage,” he said.

Currently, the plan offered to graduate student assistants provides more coverage than the current student base plan offered by the university, Lovgren said. However, adding a spouse to the graduate student assistant plan costs a premium of nearly $3,000 per year.

Lovgren said the cost for dependant insurance is so high because only spouses at “high risk,” including those who plan to get pregnant, buy the insurance. He hopes MSU will work to pool all graduate student spouses at a lower cost plan so they would be able to afford to buy insurance, he said. That way, those with high anticipated medical costs would have them spread out among the rest of the population, Lovgren said.

COGS also has considered asking MSU to self-insure students instead of insuring through a provider like Aetna, Lovgren said. However, he said university staff weren’t very receptive to the idea because they don’t want to assume a risk that fluctuates from year to year.

“At the end of the day, it’s the premium and the coverage that matter to students, not who assumes the risk,” Lovgren said.

MSU also is moving to mandate students to have health insurance beginning in the fall of 2011.

MSU Human Resources officials could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

Financial issues are among the top stressors for graduate students and anything to decrease that anxiety would be beneficial, said Matt Helm, director of graduate student life and wellness.

“All you have to do is talk to COGS or the (Graduate Employees Union) — it is an issue,” Helm said. “It’s already challenging to afford a graduate education. Add a family, add paying for your (insurance) benefits and it makes it more challenging.”

COGS President Stefan Fletcher said the group plans to present its insurance proposals to MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon and vice president for finance and operations Fred Poston, as well as the MSU Board of Trustees.

Graduate and undergraduate students vary in health care needs because graduate students are more likely to have children, be married and a higher number are international students, he said.

“Dependant health care coverage is a key focus of this discussion,” Fletcher said.