Written by Joe Adgie

An SGA regulation was changed on Monday and a Health Center representative discussed co-pay fees.

That happened during the SGA meeting that night at the UC’s Magnolia Room, the first meeting where the public was allowed to sit in during the debate and voting sessions of the meetings.

“It’s actually part of the Georgia Sunshine Laws that all parts of the meetings have to be open to the public,” said Ryan Baerwalde, SGA President. “We are an open meeting, so all parts of our meetings have to be open to the public.”

Until this meeting, the SGA had removed the public from the debate and voting sessions of the meeting. This was not a regulation that was officially in the SGA constitution or the bylaws or part of Robert’s Rules of Order, the meeting regulations that the SGA runs their meetings on, and Baerwalde explained this after some senators voiced dissension.

“Trust me, I scanned through all of them,” Baerwalde said. “Essentially, it was just a practice that wasn’t on paper, and nobody said anything bad about it.”

Baerwalde also went on to explain that the Rules Committee will draft up a resolution solidifying the public’s presence in the debate and voting sessions.

There was also a discussion about the fees at the Health Center. Lynette Lewis, administrator and assistant director at the Health Center, was in attendance answering questions about these fees.

“What we’ve done with your student health fee – which is $87 per semester – we’ve added the $40 for the new facility, so you’re allowed to come to the Student Health Center without paying anything for approximately 8.7 times,” Lewis said.

There are charges for other services, such as x-rays, but this is largely due to the fact that some of these services must be performed by outside medical professionals.

“When we take an x-ray, we send the x-rays off to Atlanta to have them read by a radiologist,” Lewis said.

According to Lewis, the $25 fee for x-rays covers the reading. She also explained that some services require fees to cover the cost of supplies.

NOTES:
-Entering Monday night’s meeting, the budget sits at $18,295.12.
-That does not include $50 for nametags for new senators, and $50 for a sheet sign. Both of these budget resolutions passed unanimously.
-Ryan Baerwalde gave the “State of the Association” speech during the meeting, thanking the SGA for what they’ve done since August, and desired to “leave behind a good legacy for SGAs to follow.”