Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2003

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Health and Human Services and Housing, to which was referred H.C.R. No. 205 entitled:

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this concurrent resolution is to show legislative support and encouragement for the efforts of the Executive Office on Aging and the Department of Health in developing the Self-Determination Demonstration Project.

Your Committee received no testimony on the matter.

Your Committee has amended this measure by deleting its contents entirely and by redirecting the resolution instead to the Auditor to conduct a study on proposed mandatory health insurance coverage.

Specifically, the resolution now requests the Auditor to assess both the social and financial effects of the proposed mandated coverage under S.B. No. 683, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, which amends chapters 431:10A, 432:1, and 432D, Hawaii Revised Statutes, by requiring that the diabetes coverage for education be provided by a certified diabetes educator, a program recognized by the American Diabetes Association, or a health care professional who has completed an accredited comprehensive diabetes education review course. Furthermore, the bill specifies that the diabetes education shall be provided by only a certified diabetes educator or a program recognized by the American Diabetes Association when deemed medically necessary by a health care provider.

Your Committee finds that S.B. No. 683, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, may add to the social and financial impacts already stemming from the current statutory mandates relating to health insurance coverage for diabetes education. Furthermore, statutes relating to the Auditor require that before any legislative measure that mandates health insurance coverage for certain providers of health care services may be considered, the Legislature must pass concurrent resolutions requesting the Auditor to assess both the social and financial effects of the proposed mandated coverage.

Your Committee finds that this resolution is the appropriate vehicle by which to request the Auditor to conduct its study.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Health and Human Services and Housing that are attached to this report, your Committees concur with the intent and purpose of H.C.R. No. 205, as amended herein, and recommend that it be referred to the Committee on Finance, in the form attached hereto as H.C.R. No. 205, H.D. 1.