STAND. COM. REP. NO. 686

                                   Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                     , 1999

                                   RE:  S.B. No. 1294
                                        S.D. 1




Honorable Norman Mizuguchi
President of the Senate
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 1999
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B.
No. 1294 entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE PUBLIC EMPLOYEES HEALTH
     FUND,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to require that eligible
employee-beneficiaries of the Public Employees' Health Fund and
their spouses enroll in the federal Medicare Part B medical
insurance plan, with exceptions to the requirement to be
determined by the Board of Trustees. 

     Your Committee finds that mandating enrollment by eligible
employee-beneficiaries of the Public Employees' Health Fund and
their spouses in the federal Medicare Part B medical insurance
plan will result in reduced costs to the Public Employees' Health
Fund as well as to public employers.

     The Committee has amended this bill by making technical,
nonsubstantive changes.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your
Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No.
1294, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third
Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1294, S.D. 1.

 
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                                   STAND. COM. REP. NO. 686
                                   Page 2


                                 Respectfully submitted on behalf
                                 of the members of the Committee
                                 on Ways and Means,



                                 ________________________________
                                 CAROL FUKUNAGA, Co-Chair



                                 ________________________________
                                 ANDREW LEVIN, Co-Chair

 
a                                                     SB1294 SD1