Address all inquiries to:
Department of Labor & Industrial Relations
Disability Compensation Division
Oahu: 830 Punchbowl Street, Room 209
P.O. Box 3769
Honolulu, Hawaii 96812-3769
Phone: (808) 586-9188
Hawaii: State Office Building
75 Aupuni Street, Room 108
Hilo, Hawaii 96720
Phone: (808) 974-6464
West P.O. Box 49
Hawaii: Kealakekua, Hawaii 96750
Phone: (808) 322-4808
Maui: State Office Building, #2
2264 Aupuni Street
Wailuku, Hawaii 96793
Phone: (808) 243-5322
Kauai: State Office Building
3060 Eiwa Street, Room 202
Lihue, Hawaii 96766-1887
Phone: (808) 274-3351
For more information, please visit our website at:
http://labor.hawaii.gov/dcd
Auxiliary aids and services are available upon request.
Please call the above listed telephone numbers, or dial 711
and ask for the phone number listed above for the
office near you. A request for a reasonable
accommodation(s) should be made no later than ten
working days prior to the needed accommodation(s).
It is the policy of the Department of Labor and Industrial
Relations that no person shall on the basis of race, color,
sex, marital status, religion, creed, ethnic origin, national
origin, age, disability, ancestry, arrest/court record, sexual
orientation, and National Guard participation be subjected
to discrimination, excluded from participation in, or denied
the benefits of the department's services, programs,
activities, or employment.
Rev 10/18
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE
HAWAII PREPAID
HEALTH CARE LAW
STATE OF HAWAII
Department of Labor and Industrial Relations
DISABILITY COMPENSATION DIVISION
The information herein is intended to provide employers and employees with general understanding of the Prepaid
Health Care Act. For comprehensive details, please refer to the law (Chapter 393, HRS).
PREPAID HEALTH CARE ACT
Originally enacted in 1974, the Hawaii Prepaid Health Care Act was the first in the nation to set minimum standards of
health care coverage for workers. Preempted in October of 1981 by the Federal Employee Retirement Income Security
Act of 1974 (ERISA), the Prepaid Health Care Act was reinstated effective March 1, 1983.
The Prepaid Health Care Act requires Hawaii employers to provide health care coverage for eligible employees to insure
protection against the high cost of medical and hospital care for nonwork-related illness or injury.
EXCLUDED EMPLOYMENT
Services excluded from health care coverage include, but are not limited to: 1) individuals who work less than twenty
hours per week; 2) Federal, State, and County workers; 3) agricultural seasonal workers; 4) insurance or real estate
salespersons paid solely by commission; 5) individuals working for son, daughter, or spouse; and 6) children under age
21 working for father or mother. (For a complete listing, refer to Section 393-5 of the law.)
SECURING COVERAGE
Employers may obtain health coverage by: 1) purchasing an approved health care plan from a health care contractor or a
Hawaii licensed insurance carrier; 2) adopting an approved self-insured health care plan; or 3) negotiating a collective
bargaining agreement.
Employees may form associations for the purpose of providing health care coverage as long as such health care
protection is obtained from an authorized health care contractor.
ELIGIBILITY FOR ENROLLMENT
Employees who work twenty hours or more per week and earn a monthly wage of at least 86.67 times the Hawaii
minimum hourly wage are deemed eligible after four consecutive weeks of employment. Health care coverage must then
be provided to such eligible employees at the earliest enrollment date of the employer's health care contractor.
EXEMPTIONS FROM COVERAGE
Exempt Employees
The following categories of employees can claim an exemption from coverage:
1) those covered by a Federally established health insurance or prepaid health care plan, such as Medicare, Medicaid or
medical care benefits provided for military dependents and military retirees and their dependents;
2) those covered as dependents under a qualified health care plan;
3) those who are recipients of public assistance or covered by a State-legislated health care plan governing medical
assistance; and
4) those who are followers of religious groups who depend upon prayer or other spiritual means for healing.
"Employee Notification to Employer" (Form HC-5)
To claim an exemption or individual waiver, an employee must complete and submit Form HC-5 to the employer. The
employer is prohibited from coercing or attempting to coerce the employee to waive coverage. The employer
retains the original Form HC-5 and gives a copy to the employee. The employer sends a copy to the Department of
Labor and Industrial Relations only when the employee selects waiver #4 or upon request by the Director. The
exemption/waiver notification is binding for one year and must be renewed every December 31.
.