Wellness Welcome Letter – Undergraduate

Please note that you must set up your Lewis & Clark email account and then wait at least 24 hours before you can set up your portal account. To set up your account, follow this link http://lclark.medicatconnect.com and click “Register” in the upper right hand corner. The portal is a secure platform that will allow you to enter immunization and other health information described below. If you have any difficulties setting up your portal account, please check out this help sheet.

You may need to collect medical information from your family or health care provider in order to complete these forms.

1. Oregon state law requires measles (MMR) immunizations prior to attending classes. We need you to enter your immunization dates in the health portal. Click on the immunization tab to enter your two MMR dates (you may also enter your other immunization dates, but they are not required).
2. If you have been in a high risk tuberculosis (TB) area, we also require TB screening prior to attending classes. Click on the immunization tab to enter your TB testing information. Tuberculosis screening is required if you meet either of the following criteria: 1) You were born in a country with a high incidence of tuberculosis disease; or 2) in the last five years you lived in, traveled to, or emigrated from a country with a high incidence of tuberculosis disease. (For a list of countries with high incidence of tuberculosis disease, see Appendix B of the publication Tuberculosis Screening and Targeted Testing of College and University Students.)

These forms are located on the Health Portal under the “Forms” heading.

Within the Health History form, please be sure to provide the names of any prescription medication(s) you are taking, including medication name, dose, and frequency.

Your completed forms in our Health Information Portal (HIP) will become part of your permanent medical record. This record is held secure within Wellness Services. You control how information from these forms is shared—please see the forms for details.

Please note that if you have a health condition—such as hearing loss, mobility impairment, low vision, learning disability, or psychiatric disorder—and you think you may need some support at Lewis & Clark directly related to any impairment you experience, you should contact the Lewis & Clark Office of Student Accessibility (access@lclark.edu) as soon as possible. You must contact that office as a first step if you desire any academic or housing accommodations. Because your health history forms are confidential within Wellness Services, disclosure of a health condition in our health history forms does not constitute disclosure of a disability to the College.

As you complete these various forms, think about any needs you might have for health care once you arrive on campus, including medical treatment, medication, and psychological or psychiatric care. Please be aware:

• Our Health staff provides basic primary health care and urgent care.
• Our Counseling staff provide time-limited, intermittent counseling, crisis services, and consultation. If you are seeking routine ongoing counseling throughout your college career, or are in need of intensive or specialized treatment, you will need to arrange for off-campus care. Referral assistance is offered through the Office of Student Accessibility.
• We have limited psychiatry hours available for students who are engaged in counseling at the LC Counseling Center.

 

All undergraduate students attending classes in the Fall or Spring semesters must have the school-sponsored health insurance plan or health insurance that is comparable to the school-sponsored health insurance plan (please confirm directly with your insurance company whether it meets the criteria and covers providers and required services in the Portland metro area). All actively enrolled undergraduate students are automatically enrolled in and charged for student health insurance, with summer coverage included with the spring coverage.

Students can use our Health and Counseling Services without being enrolled in the school-sponsored health insurance plan. However, because we provide only basic care on campus, students often must access care off-campus at some time during the academic year. This care can include expensive diagnostic tests, consultation with specialists, ongoing mental health care, or ER visits.

Lewis & Clark has partnered with PacificSource to offer a health insurance plan for students that contains robust benefits that support the health of college students. The plan provides excellent value as well as access to a wide network of providers both in Portland and across the nation. The plan may provide a better value for you than health insurance offered through a parent’s or partner’s employer.  We encourage you to review our school-sponsored insurance plan and see if it meets your needs.  Please note: Medicaid plans from states other than Oregon and Washington generally do not meet the comparability requirements.

If you do not want to be enrolled in and charged for student health insurance, you must complete our online waiver.

• For students starting coursework in the fall, the waiver form can be accessed from the declining insurance coverage website beginning in mid-July, and the form must be completed by the deadline of September 19, 2023.

• Students starting coursework in the spring will be sent a link to the online waiver.

Students have only one opportunity each academic year to waive enrollment in the student health insurance plan. The waiver must be submitted at the start of each academic year. We encourage our undergraduate students who have recently graduated high school to confer with their parents or guardians to evaluate whether or not they need our school-sponsored health insurance.

If you have questions about student health insurance, please see our student health insurance website or email stuhealthinsurance@lclark.edu or call 503-768-7160. 

Please note: If you are a visiting student from Hoksuei Gakuen, Waseda, SACM, the Embassy of Kuwait, Rikkyo or Konkuk, you will have health insurance coverage through your sponsoring organization so you will not be enrolled in student health insurance. You can disregard the above paragraphs about insurance issues.