STAND. COM. REP. NO.923-02
Honolulu, Hawaii
, 2002
RE: S.B. No. 2027
S.D. 1
H.D. 1
Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say
Speaker, House of Representatives
Twenty-First State Legislature
Regular Session of 2002
State of Hawaii
Sir:
Your Committees on Human Services and Housing and Health, to which was referred S.B. No. 2027, S.D. 1, entitled:
"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO PRESCRIPTION DRUGS,"
beg leave to report as follows:
The purpose of this bill is to alleviate the costs of prescription drugs for low-income individuals by:
(1) Establishing the Medicaid Prescription Drug Rebate Special Fund (Special Fund);
(2) Establishing the Medicaid Prescription Drug Expansion Program (Program) that will offer discounted prescription drugs to qualified individuals whose income is at or below 300 percent of the federal poverty level;
(3) Requiring that the Department of Human Services (DHS) deposit into the Special Fund the State's portion of Medicaid rebates that have not been deposited into the general fund;
(4) Appropriating funds to pay $1 for each prescription written to a qualified individual;
(5) Appropriating funds for the administrative costs of the Program; and
(6) Appropriating funds for front-loading the cost of the Program.
NAMI Oahu, Hawaii State Teachers Association, Healthcare Association of Hawaii, and several concerned individuals testified in support of this measure. DHS, the Executive Office on Aging, Longs Drug Stores, and several concerned individuals supported the intent of this measure.
The Department of Budget and Finance and Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America submitted testimony in opposition of this measure. A concerned citizen submitted comments.
Your Committees find that prescription drugs are increasing in cost and becoming even more exorbitant, particularly for low-income individuals on fixed incomes. Something must be done on the state level to provide relief from the high cost of prescription drugs.
Several other states have implemented programs similar to the one proposed in this measure and have been very successful in providing low-cost prescription drugs at a relatively low cost to the State. It is estimated that for every $1,000,000 spent by the State on this Program, consumers will save at least $12,000,000 in the cost of prescription drugs. The cost-savings will allow individuals to spend their money elsewhere.
Your Committees have amended this bill by:
(1) Changing the references to the chapter in the Hawaii Revised Statutes that relates to DHS, the appropriate agency, instead of the Department of Health;
(2) Consolidating the appropriations into one and removing the appropriation for front-loading the cost of the Program;
(3) Specifying within the appropriation that DHS will hire eight employees to administer the Program;
(4) Specifying that the appropriations shall be repaid to the general fund by the Program by the end of fiscal year 2005 if the manufacturers rebates are sufficient;
(5) Changing the effective date to July 1, 2002; and
(6) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for purposes of clarity and style.
As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Human Services and Housing and Health that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2027, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2027, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Finance.
Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Human Services and Housing and Health,
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____________________________ DENNIS A. ARAKAKI, Chair |
____________________________ MICHAEL P. KAHIKINA, Chair |
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