Cayetano names 10
to health fund board

The new trustees will design
and approve health benefit plans
for public employees

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Associated Press

Gov. Ben Cayetano has appointed the 10-member board of the new Hawaii Employer-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund.

The board will design and approve new health benefit plans to help control the spiraling cost of health benefits for 83,000 active and retired state and county employees.

"Inflation and dramatic increases in the cost of health care across the nation are jeopardizing the state's financial ability to cover the cost of health benefits, which is growing six times faster than the state budget each year," Cayetano said Friday.

"In fiscal year 2003, public employee health benefits are projected to cost the state $284 million. This amount exceeds the combined budgets of the 13 smallest state departments and offices by more than $40 million."

The new plans must be implemented by July 1, 2003. At that time, all public employees receiving health benefits from the Hawaii Public Employees Health Fund or their respective unions will be placed in a single group to be insured through the new trust.

As required by law, Cayetano appointed five trustees to represent the state and five trustees to represent employee unions.

The trustees for the state are Sam Callejo, the governor's chief of staff; Audrey Hidano, deputy director of the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations; Commerce and Consumer Affairs Director Kathryn Matayoshi; Budget and Finance Director Neal Miyahira; and Davis Yogi, the state's chief negotiator and director of the Department of Human Resources Development.

The union trustees are Joan Lewis of the Hawaii State Teachers Association, Willard Miyake of the Hawaii Government Employees Association, Clifford Uwaine of the United Public Workers union, James Williams of the Trust for Emergent Education; and retiree James Yasuda.

The trustees will meet for the first time in January.