STAND. COM. REP. NO. 807

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2005

RE: S.B. No. 802

S.D. 2

 

 

Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2005

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 802, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO A STATE PHARMACY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to establish a state pharmacy assistance program to provide continuing or new prescription drug benefits to eligible elderly and disabled residents.

Specifically, the bill establishes a state pharmacy assistance program within the Department of Human Services that will coordinate the program's prescription drug benefits with the federal medicare part D prescription drug benefit. The bill provides that:

(1) The Department of Human Services is authorized to assist eligible individuals' enrollment into the pharmacy assistance program, with priority to residents who are eligible for both medicare and medicaid;

(2) Drug manufacturers are required to provide rebates to the state medicare prescription drug program as a condition of their products' availability to participants in the state pharmacy assistance program;

(3) The pharmacy assistance program is authorized to pay some or all of the deductibles, co-payments, and premiums for eligible residents, subject to the receipt of sufficient rebates; and

(4) The state pharmacy assistance program is to be funded by rebates paid to the State's medicare prescription drug program.

Your Committee finds that the cost of prescription drugs has increased steadily over the past several years. As a result, many seniors and disabled residents who live on fixed incomes have difficulty in obtaining their necessary medications. Currently, some individuals who are eligible for medicare also qualify for medicaid prescription drug benefits; these dual eligible individuals now receive free prescription drugs as a medicaid benefit. Beginning January 1, 2006, dual eligible individuals will be required to participate in the federal medicare part D drug benefit, which will mean that they will no longer receive free drug benefits from medicaid. Your Committee believes that the pharmacy assistance program established by this measure will assist individuals eligible for medicare and medicaid to retain some of their current medicaid drug benefits and will also assist a number of eligible medicare beneficiaries in receiving new drug benefits.

Upon further consideration, your Committee has amended this measure by making technical nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and style.

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. 802, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 802, S.D. 2.

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

____________________________

BRIAN T. TANIGUCHI, Chair