As colleges’ coronavirus costs rise, insurance coverage still unclear – Education Dive
Schools beset by expenses from the pandemic may look to insurers for help — but it will likely take months to work out.
In mid-April, University of California System President Janet Napolitano pleaded with her state’s elected leaders for help with its enormous coronavirus costs, which reached $558 million in March 2020 alone.
The 10-campus system “is confronting many of the worst impacts of the virus all at once,” Napolitano wrote in an April 15 letter detailing the effects of the pandemic on education, employment, research and its medical centers. “As the Governor and the Legislature distribute emergency funding … I am asking you to remember the important function of the University of California in addressing this crisis.”
Relief from the state may not come as California could cut its budget in May, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Campuses around the U.S. are confronting similar questions about how they will cover pandemic-related expenses, or make up for resulting losses. In the last several weeks, institutions nationwide have publicly shared their own hefty bills, along with concerns over whether they can afford to pay them. And with the economic downturn, schools may not be able to rely on donors or their endowments to cover these costs.