STAND. COM. REP. 2312

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2004

RE: S.B. No. 2579

S.D. 1

 

 

Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2004

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Health, to which was referred S.B. No. 2579 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO MENTAL HEALTH AND ALCOHOL AND DRUG ABUSE INSURANCE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to prohibit any rate, term, or condition that places a greater financial burden on an insured for access to treatment for mental illness than for treatment for a physical health condition.

Testimony in support of this measure was received from the Department of Health, Hawaii Psychological Association, Hawaii Substance Abuse Coalition, Hawaii Government Employees Association, Hawaii Disability Rights Center, Hawaii Psychiatric Medical Association, Blueprint for Change, Equal Insurance Coalition, and National Alliance for the Mentally Ill Hawaii. Comments were received from the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs and the Hawaii Medical Service Association.

Your Committee finds that mental illness and drug and alcohol dependence are treatable illnesses that should not be excluded from or given lesser coverage by Hawaii's medical insurance plans. Your Committee further finds that the experience in other states has clearly demonstrated that mandating parity of insurance benefits for mental illness and substance abuse treatment does not cause any appreciable increase in insurance premiums.

Your Committee has amended this measure by deleting its contents and replacing it with language that:

(1) Amends the two-treatment episodes per lifetime cap on alcohol and drug dependence benefits to two treatment episodes per year;

(2) Clarifies the definition of serious mental illness; and

(3) Changes the effective date to January 1, 2005.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Health that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2579, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2579, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection and Housing.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Health,

____________________________

ROSALYN H. BAKER, Chair