Hawaii Prepaid Health Care Act
Encyclopedia
Hawaii Prepaid Health Care (PHC) Act (PHCA) is a state law (Hawaii Revised Statutes Chapter 393) enacted January 1, 1975 in the State of Hawaii to improve health care coverage by employer mandate. Under the law, businesses are required to offer health insurance
to employees who work more than twenty hours per week for four or more consecutive weeks in the State of Hawaii. Before the law Hawaii had an insured rate of 70%. The highest insured rate after the law was enacted was 98%; by 2009 Hawaii's insured rate dropped to 92%(2009, npr
), due largely to the 2009 recession
.
Among other things, Hawaii's law requires employers to offer coverage to employees working at least 20 hours per week. In contrast, the federal law requires employers to offer coverage to employees working at least 30 hours per week effective Jan. 1, 2014. The two laws also set different penalties on employers that do not offer coverage.
At 8.2%, Hawaii had the nation's second-lowest uninsured rate, trailing only Massachusetts, where 4.4% of the population lacked health care coverage in 2009, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Health insurance
Health insurance is insurance against the risk of incurring medical expenses among individuals. By estimating the overall risk of health care expenses among a targeted group, an insurer can develop a routine finance structure, such as a monthly premium or payroll tax, to ensure that money is...
to employees who work more than twenty hours per week for four or more consecutive weeks in the State of Hawaii. Before the law Hawaii had an insured rate of 70%. The highest insured rate after the law was enacted was 98%; by 2009 Hawaii's insured rate dropped to 92%(2009, npr
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
), due largely to the 2009 recession
Late 2000s – early 2010s recession in the United States
After the bursting of the great Housing bubble in mid-2007, United States of America was stuck by a huge recession. The United States entered 2008 during a housing market correction, a subprime mortgage crisis and a declining dollar value....
.
Among other things, Hawaii's law requires employers to offer coverage to employees working at least 20 hours per week. In contrast, the federal law requires employers to offer coverage to employees working at least 30 hours per week effective Jan. 1, 2014. The two laws also set different penalties on employers that do not offer coverage.
At 8.2%, Hawaii had the nation's second-lowest uninsured rate, trailing only Massachusetts, where 4.4% of the population lacked health care coverage in 2009, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.