Additional Information Related to Analysis of the Administration's Proposal to Ensure Solvency of the United Mine Workers of America Combined Benefit Fund

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the United Mine Workers of America Combined Benefit Fund.

GAO noted that: (1) both the net average cost per beneficiary of providing benefits under the fund and per beneficiary premium increased each fiscal year for the past 5 years; (2) the percentage increase in the average net cost per beneficiary of providing benefits under the fund for the past 5 fiscal years fluctuated from 1 to 14 percent, while the percentage increase in the medical component of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for those years was relatively stable, fluctuating from 3 to 4 percent; (3) according to Fund officials, while the increase in the medical component of the CPI is driven primarily by price increases, the increase in the fund's average net cost of providing benefits per beneficiary is driven by the increased use of medical care in addition to price increases; (4) income during fiscal years 1996 through 2000 was derived from three primary sources: (a) coal company premiums; (b) the Health Care Financing Administration; and (c) transfers of interest from the Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation trust fund; and (5) these three sources provided over 85 percent of the fund's total income for each of the past 5 years.