STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2251

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 2494

       S.D. 1

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fifth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2010

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Health, to which was referred S.B. No. 2494 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO INSURANCE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to require health insurers and like entities to offer an insured prescription drug coverage that provides identical benefits to the insured's previous policy, regardless of whether the previous policy was provided by the same insurer.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from National Cornerstone Healthcare Services Inc., the American Cancer Society, the Neuropathy Action Foundation, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Hawaii Coalition for Health, the Hawaii Congress of Physicians and other Healthcare Providers, the Guillian-Barré Syndrome/Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy Foundation International, the Alzheimer's Association, Aloha Chapter, and one individual.  Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, the ‘Ohana Health Plan, and the Hawaii Association of Health Plans.  Testimony supporting the intent of this measure with amendments was received from the Hawaii Medical Association.  The American Council of Life Insurers and one individual submitted testimony commenting on this measure.  Written testimony presented to the Committee may be reviewed on the Legislature's website.

     Your Committee finds that an individual should not lose access to an effective drug or drug regimen or have to suffer adverse side effects of a substitute because the individual is forced to switch drugs or brands upon changing insurance providers.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by inserting an effective date of July 1, 2050 to encourage further discussion of this issue.

     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. 2494, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2494, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection.

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

____________________________

DAVID Y. IGE, Chair