Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2001

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Health, to which was referred S.B. No. 598, S.D. 2, entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to authorize the Department of Health (DOH) to establish a statewide Hawaii Birth Defects Program.

The March of Dimes, Hawaii Medical Association, and various concerned citizens submitted testimony in support of this measure. DOH, Kaiser Permanente, the Hawaii Birth Defects Program, and Hawaii Nurses' Association supported the measure with the amendments proposed in DOH's testimony.

The Christian Science Committee on Publication for Hawaii submitted comments and a request to include a religious accommodation amendment because it felt that by having a birth defects registry, its religious rights would be infringed.

Your Committee finds that birth defects are the leading cause of infant and childhood death and long-term childhood disability in Hawaii. Moreover, for the last 12 years, the Hawaii Birth Defects Program has collected data on the incidence, trend, and clustering of birth defects. This data has been used by various agencies as a tool to determine whether environmental hazards are associated with selected birth defects and to identify possible causes or risk factors associated with birth defects.

Although your Committee understands the concerns of the Christian Science Committee on Publication for Hawaii, it does not feel that data collection infringes upon the religious rights of Christian Scientists. Furthermore, DOH assured your Committee that parents may choose not to participate in studies and not include data by submitting a formal request to DOH.

Your Committee has amended this bill based on DOH's recommendations which represents a collaborative effort with interested organizations by:

In addition, technical, nonsubstantive amendments were made for purposes of clarity and style.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Health that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 598, S.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 598, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Finance.