College Athletes Side-Lined with Medical Bills

If you think the school is picking up the tab on all those torn tendons, broken bones and other injuries that are commonplace amongst college athletes, think again. College athletes are amongst those that are burdened with extensive medical bills. Take for example a rower at Colgate University who is strapped with $80,000 in medical bills for back and leg pain. The school won’t pay citing she was treated for an illness and not a sport injury.
While some colleges make insurance available, not all of them do; nor do they all provide coverage for their revenue-earning athletes’ medical bills. They’re required to form a direct correlation between the injury and the sport; if no tie can be made, the students are responsible for payment. And for those fortunate enough to have medical insurance, coverage for injuries related to their sport is often excluded.
The NCAA does not currently mandate coverage, only requiring schools to basically check to see if students have insurance.
via Wall Street Journal