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Committee hears bill allowing public colleges to buy health insurance for student athletes
Summary
A state Senate committee heard Senate Bill 5,158, which would permit public four‑year institutions to make and pay for health insurance for current and, under some conditions, former intercollegiate student athletes. Testimony emphasized cost, parity and examples from Washington institutions.
Senate Bill 5,158 would allow public four‑year colleges to offer and pay the premiums on health insurance for currently enrolled intercollegiate student athletes and, in some cases, former athletes if the institution's athletic association determines post‑eligibility coverage is warranted.
The bill was introduced at the March 18 meeting of the Postsecondary Education & Workforce Committee. Saranda Ross, counsel to the committee, told members the bill mirrors a House companion that did not advance earlier this session and clarified that the change would let institutions pay premiums rather than requiring students or trustees to pay them.
Senator Javier Valdez, the bill sponsor, said the change is “the right thing to do,” noting student athletes represent and perform for universities and that institutions already pay for care tied directly to athletics. “This would simply allow our four‑year colleges, our public university here, to pay the health care premiums of our student athletes,” Valdez said.
Representatives of Washington State University and the University of Washington testified in support. Chris Mueller of Washington State University said the institution currently spends “about a million and a half a year” on out‑of‑pocket costs for athletic medical care and argued that offering insurance would be more cost‑effective. Joe Dacca of the University of Washington similarly urged committee passage and said UW concurs with WSU’s view.
Committee members asked whether other states offer similar coverage; Valdez and witnesses said some institutions around the country do provide comparable benefits and that staff and institutional witnesses could point to examples during subsequent testimony.
No formal vote was taken; the hearing record shows proponents from several public universities and no opposing testimony on the public record at the committee hearing.
The committee paused the public hearing following institutional testimony and moved on to other bills.
