Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2004

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Health, to which was referred H.C.R. No. 38 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this concurrent resolution is to urge the Hawaii Health Systems Corporation (HHSC) and St. Francis Healthcare System (St. Francis) to continue their partnership in serving the needs of dialysis patients in the Puna District of the island of Hawaii by expanding its network of dialysis treatment facilities to the Keaau Family Health Center (Keaau Center).

HHSC, St. Francis, and numerous concerned individuals testified in support of this measure and provided comments.

Your Committee finds that HHSC provides inpatient dialysis services and St. Francis provides outpatient services. Dialysis services in Puna are considered outpatient, and patients from Puna must travel thirty to forty miles to the St. Francis Hilo Dialysis Facility for treatment. St. Francis indicated that it does not currently plan to develop a satellite dialysis treatment facility in the Puna-Ka'u District, although the situation is being monitored.

Your Committee finds that reimbursement for dialysis services is low and that the cost of dialysis treatment has increased, but financial information on the cost of establishing and operating a satellite facility was unavailable.

Your Committee has amended this concurrent resolution by:

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Health that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of H.C.R. No. 38, as amended herein, and recommends that it be referred to the Committee on Finance in the form attached hereto as H.C.R. No. 38, H.D. 1.