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Well, perhaps it's time for me to stop playing Don Quixote. The Security and Exchange Commission is on the case. According to an SEC notice on their web page www.sec.gov the SEC is getting more serious about requiring public companies to disclose on their annual or quarterly reports their year 2000 readiness if it would affect stock values. They figure this means just about everyone. The SEC had solicited this info previously, and had been stonewalled. Now the requirements are a bit more extensive and specific. "As discussed in Section III.A below, we believe a company must provide Year 2000 disclosure if: (1) its assessment of its Year 2000 issues is not complete, or (2) management determines that the consequences of its Year 2000 issues would have a material effect on the company's business, results of operations, or financial condition, without taking into account the company's efforts to avoid those consequences. We expect that for the vast majority of companies Year 2000 issues are likely to be material, and therefore disclosure would be required. When a company has a Year 2000 disclosure obligation, we believe that full and fair disclosure includes: (1) the company's state of readiness; (2) the costs to address the company's Year 2000 issues; (3) the risks of the company's Year 2000 issues; and (4) the company's contingency plans." It will be interesting to see what the for-profit health care organizations report. Phil Tompkins Hoboken NJ 60/9