I read with great interest the editorial “Union funding: Campus cash cow?” (Feb. 18), and I appreciated your characterization of UHS’s work as providing “a critical service to campus.”

However, I want to clarify that I didn’t guarantee UHS would never again have to request an increase above the seg. fee cap. Increases in segregated fees are tied to the rate of inflation in Wisconsin. Unfortunately, health care costs are not. Due to 15 percent increased student utilization in our new facility and state budgetary factors, this year’s increase was significantly higher than we anticipate in the future However, the economic realities are such that it is quite possible we may have to request an increase of more than 1.9 percent again. If that becomes unavoidable, I wouldn’t want your readers to believe I had promised otherwise and had broken my word.

UHS strives every year to use every dollar of our funding in a responsible and efficient manner to care for individual students and to safeguard the health of the student community overall. We will continue to work to keep expenses low while maintaining high-quality medical, counseling and prevention services that address students’ pressing health needs. In addition, we’ll keep exploring all funding options in search of the best structure for providing continued access to care in future years.

Sarah Van Orman, MD

Executive Director

University Health Services

[email protected]