REPORT TITLE:
***


DESCRIPTION:
***

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                        1137
THE SENATE                              S.B. NO.           
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 1999                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________


                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT

RELATING TO THE PUBLIC EMPLOYEES HEALTH FUND.



BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 1      SECTION 1.  Section 87-1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 2 amended by amending the definition of "dependent-beneficiary" to
 
 3 read as follows:
 
 4      "(4) "Dependent-beneficiary" means an employee-beneficiary's
 
 5           spouse and any unmarried child[,] under the age of
 
 6           nineteen, including an adopted child, stepchild, foster
 
 7           child, or recognized natural child [who lives with the
 
 8           employee-beneficiary,] or an unmarried child under the
 
 9           age of twenty-four who is enrolled in an educational
 
10           institution for not less than the minimum number of
 
11           credit hours required by such educational institution
 
12           for full-time students, or an unmarried child
 
13           regardless of age who is incapable of self-support
 
14           because of a mental or physical incapacity which
 
15           existed prior to the unmarried child's reaching the age
 
16           of nineteen, deemed eligible by the board to receive
 
17           health or dental services of a health benefits plan;"
 
18      SECTION 2.  Section 87-1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
19 amended by amending the definition of "employee-beneficiary" to
 

 
Page 2                                                     1137
                                     S.B. NO.           
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1 read as follows:
 
 2      "(6) "Employee-beneficiary" means an employee, the
 
 3           beneficiary of an employee who is killed in the
 
 4           performance of the employee's duty, an employee who
 
 5           retired prior to the establishment of the fund, or the
 
 6           beneficiary of a retired member of the employees'
 
 7           retirement system, a county pension system, or a
 
 8           police, firefighters, and bandsmen pension system of
 
 9           the State or county, upon the death of the retired
 
10           member and, which beneficiary, if a child, does not
 
11           marry, or if a surviving spouse, does not remarry
 
12           [provided that for the purposes of this paragraph,
 
13           "family member" means the deceased retired member's or
 
14           employee's spouse and unmarried child under the age of
 
15           nineteen (including a legally adopted child and a
 
16           stepchild or recognized natural child who lives with
 
17           the deceased retired member or employee in a regular
 
18           parent-child relationship), or unmarried child
 
19           regardless of age who is incapable of self-support
 
20           because of a mental or physical incapacity which
 
21           existed prior to the unmarried child's reaching the age
 
22           of nineteen;] and provided further that the employee,
 
23           the employee's beneficiary, or the beneficiary of the
 

 
Page 3                                                     1137
                                     S.B. NO.           
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1           deceased retired member is deemed eligible by the board
 
 2           to receive health or dental services of a health
 
 3           benefits plan or a long-term care benefits plan;"
 
 4      SECTION 3.  Section 87-4, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 5 amended by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:
 
 6      "(b)  The State through the department of budget and finance
 
 7 and the several counties through their respective departments of
 
 8 finance shall pay to the fund a monthly contribution equal to the
 
 9 amount established under chapter 89C or specified in the
 
10 applicable public sector collective bargaining agreement,
 
11 whichever is appropriate, for each unmarried child who has not
 
12 attained the age of nineteen of all employee-beneficiaries who
 
13 are enrolled for dental plan benefits.  The contributions shall
 
14 be used towards the payment of costs of dental benefits of a
 
15 health benefits plan.  Notwithstanding any provisions to the
 
16 contrary, no part of the fund shall be used to finance the
 
17 contributions except a rate credit or reimbursement or earnings
 
18 or interest therefrom received by the fund or general revenues
 
19 appropriated for that purpose."
 
20      SECTION 4.  Section 87-4.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
21 amended by amending subsection (c) to read as follows:
 
22      "(c)  The State through the department of budget and finance
 

 
 
 
Page 4                                                     1137
                                     S.B. NO.           
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1 and the several counties through their respective departments of
 
 2 finance shall pay to the fund a monthly contribution equal to the
 
 3 total monthly premium for each unmarried child who has not
 
 4 attained the age of nineteen of all employee-beneficiaries who
 
 5 are enrolled [in the fund's dental plan for children under this
 
 6 section] for dental plan benefits."
 
 7      SECTION 5.  Section 87-22.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 8 amended to read as follows:
 
 9      "§87-22.5  Determination of dental plan benefits.  Pursuant
 
10 to section 87-4, the board of trustees shall provide dental plan
 
11 benefits to the unmarried children of employee-beneficiaries who
 
12 have not attained the age of nineteen in the following manner:
 
13      (1)  For those children of employee-beneficiaries who are
 
14           not participating in a dental program of an employee
 
15           organization (hereafter called "nonparticipating
 
16           employee-beneficiaries"), the board shall determine a
 
17           dental plan and eligibility requirements for such
 
18           benefits based upon a statutory monthly contribution
 
19           per enrolled child;
 
20      (2)  For those children of employee-beneficiaries who
 
21           participate in the dental program of an employee
 
22           organization, the board shall allot the statutory
 
23           monthly contribution per enrolled child or the actual
 

 
Page 5                                                     1137
                                     S.B. NO.           
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1           monthly cost of the child's coverage, whichever is
 
 2           less, towards the purchase of dental plan benefits
 
 3           under the dental program of an employee organization;
 
 4           provided that no enrolled child shall have more than
 
 5           one allotment a month; or
 
 6      (3)  Paragraphs (1) and (2) notwithstanding, an employee-
 
 7           beneficiary shall be required to enroll all of the
 
 8           employee-beneficiary's unmarried children who are under
 
 9           the age of nineteen in the children's dental plan for
 
10           nonparticipating employee-beneficiaries or the dental
 
11           program of an employee organization."
 
12      SECTION 6.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed.
 
13 New statutory material is underscored.
 
14      SECTION 7.  This Act shall take effect upon approval.
 
15 
 
16                              INTRODUCED BY:______________________