STAND. COM. REP. 1330
Honolulu, Hawaii
, 2003
RE: S.B. No. 1324
S.D. 1
H.D. 2
Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say
Speaker, House of Representatives
Twenty-Second State Legislature
Regular Session of 2003
State of Hawaii
Sir:
Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred S.B. No. 1324, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, entitled:
"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO CONCILIATION PANELS,"
begs leave to report as follows:
The purpose of this bill as received is to:
(1) Require a claimant to be evaluated by a physician before a claim can be filed with the medical claim conciliation panel (MCCP);
(2) Provide an option to use alternative dispute resolution (ADR) to evaluate a claim after initial filing with the MCCP; and
(3) Amend tolling provisions of the statute of limitations when claims are filed with an ADR provider.
The Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs and the Hawaii Medical Association testified in support of this bill. The Judiciary submitted testimony in support of the alternative dispute resolution provisions of this measure and took no position on the other provisions. The Consumer Lawyers of Hawaii commented on this bill and proposed an amendment.
Your Committee finds that ADR procedures may alleviate some difficulties inherent in the medical claim conciliation process, without unduly burdening claimants or their attorneys before the filing of a medical malpractice claim.
Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by:
(1) Deleting the provisions requiring consultation with a physician prior to filing a claim with the MCCP;
(2) Amending the ADR provision to clarify that the Director of Commerce and Consumer Affairs is responsible for approval both of the ADR provider and the ADR process; and
(3) Making technical, nonsubstantive changes for clarity, style, and consistency with other statutory sections.
As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1324, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1324, S.D. 1, H.D. 2.
Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Judiciary,
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____________________________ ERIC G. HAMAKAWA, Chair |
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