The UTRGV Student Health Center is an essential resource for students on campus.
The Health Center has physician medical directors, โmid-level providers [and] nurse practitioners that come together and host a variety of services for students,โ according to Rick Gray, director of Student Health Services.
The mission of Student Health is to provide high-quality health services and educational programs to all students, allowing them to devote their full attention to the universityโs goal of education and self-discovery, according to its website.
Physical examinations, general checkups, prescriptions and over-the-counter medications, a full-service laboratory, immunizations and vaccines are just some of the services provided.
UT Health also provides accessible, confidential and cost-effective womenโs health services, the website states.
Womenโs health services include routine exams, birth control prescriptions and management, pregnancy testing, family planning and counseling referrals and womenโs wellness appointments.
โAbout 40 to 45% of what we do is for womenโs health services,โ Gray said.
For a service fee of $30 per semester, students may visit the clinics as many times as they want and will never be charged for an office visit.
โThere are some things we have to charge for,โ Gray said. โWe have a small pharmacy, so any medications that are ordered โฆ students would have to pay for them. โฆ We only charge what it costs us to get them. โฆ The same with lab work. If you need lab work, we have a contract with our on-campus lab to provide services that [are] very cheap.โ
Any changes that are billed are not collected and are instead credited to the studentsโ ASSIST account.
โWe donโt collect any money in the clinic,โ Gray said. โCharges are just posted on your ASSIST account. You can pay them off or wait to pay them off at the end of the semester. โฆ Itโs up to you.โ
UT Health also offers students insurance, AcademicBlue Student Health, which is a statewide contract and is available at $250 a month.
RGV Student Health is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The on-campus clinics are located in Cortez Hall on the Texas Southmost College campus and at 613 N. Sugar Road in Edinburg.
Walk-in checkups are available, but students requesting elective procedures must schedule an appointment, which can be done by phone at 665-2511 for Edinburg and 882-3896 for Brownsville. Appointments can also be made by emailing healthservices@utrgv.edu.
โJust remember that itโs your clinic,โ Gray said. โYouโve already paid for it. Call us if youโre not sure, if you have a question. Thatโs our job, to find answers. โฆ Our job is to provide you the services you need to be successful at school.โ
