STAND. COM. REP. NO. 750

                                   Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                     , 1999

                                   RE:  S.B. No. 1137
                                        




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. 1137 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 broaden the eligibility for
dependent-beneficiaries of participants enrolled in the State's
health insurance plan.

     Your Committee finds that recently, there has been an exodus
from the state health insurance plan by participants who have
left for more affordable competing programs.  This has resulted
in an inordinately high percentage of older participants who have
increased costs because of the nature of the medical care they
require.  To remedy this situation, changes must be made to the
health insurance plan law to attract participants back to the
program.

     This bill does just that by broadening the eligibility for
dependent-beneficiaries to effectively increase the number of
possible dependent-beneficiaries that may be claimed by a
participant.  More significantly, the bill removes the
requirement that beneficiaries must live at home and allows a
student beneficiary to qualify for benefits until the age of

 
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                                   STAND. COM. REP. NO. 750
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twenty-four.  The bill also provides for certain beneficiaries
who are mentally or physically incapacitated and broadens the
eligibility of employee-beneficiaries.

     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.
1137 and recommends that it pass Third Reading.

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



                                 ________________________________
                                 CAROL FUKUNAGA, Co-Chair



                                 ________________________________
                                 ANDREW LEVIN, Co-Chair

 
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