Members of the Graduate Employees' Organization lined Springfield Avenue in front of Grainger Engineering Library during a rally Wednesday afternoon to demand better health care coverage.

Rally participants yelled for the University to continue negotiations with the GEO to complete a contract both parties can agree upon. Negotiations have been ongoing for about nine months.

"We want better health care and that's our number one issue," said Bryan Nicholson, GEO communications officer. "We are willing to stake our jobs on it, but we don't want it to have to come to that."

In February, the GEO presented the University with a health care plan and gave them a deadline to respond, said Alice Quisno, GEO member.

"The University hasn't responded until today and they did with a plan that was mediocre," Quisno said.

Quisno said the GEO examined health care benefits at seven other universities, including University of Michigan and Michigan State University, when they presented their health care plan.

"We looked at unionized and non-unionized schools," she said. "Some non-unionized schools have better health care than we do."

Quisno said the GEO is looking for a lower insurance premium and for the University to help more with health care costs.

"Insurance is outrageous," she said. "We pay $642 a month and we don't have prescription coverage."

Nicholson said a lack of contract almost a year after the union election could deter other possible graduate students from coming to the University.

"The University is looking to recruit students, but they are not going to attract the best and brightest students without a contract," he said.

Jason Dunick, a graduate student in economics, said the presence of a GEO that is willing to negotiate influenced his decision to come to the University.

"I am paying $360 a month in prescription drugs, so I am hoping something will change," he said.

Robin Kaler, University spokeswoman, would not comment on the mediation process, as the University does not negotiate through the media. She said GEO members will continue to meet every two weeks with a University committee to discuss contract negotiations. She said because this is the GEO's first contract, there was no set time limit to create the contract.

Some graduate students said they have serious financial difficulties because of the lack of current health care benefits.

Nathalie Morasch, graduate student in philosophy, said she had neck problems that required surgery. When insurance would not cover her expenses, Morasch said her doctor was so shocked he wrote a letter to the University.

"I had to pay $7,500, which is about as much as I am making in a year," Morasch said. "It shouldn't be like this."

Rachel Shulman, graduate student in history, said she has to take out a student loan to pay for her medical bills.

"I don't want to have to choose between my health and eating," Shulman said. "Anything has to be better than what we have."