Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2004

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Health, to which was referred S.B. No. 2580 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to authorize issuance of general obligation bonds and appropriate funds for the Hawaii Health Systems Corporation.

Testimony in support of this measure was received from the Hawaii Health Systems Corporation, Hale Ho'ola Hamakua in Honokaa, Hilo Medical Center, Maui Memorial Medical Center, Kula Hospital, the Hawaii Government Employees Association/AFSCME Local 152, AFL-CIO, and the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii.

Your Committee finds that there is a tremendous shortage of long-term care beds in Hawaii. Providers of long-term care services are working very hard to maximize efficient utilization of the current number of beds. But an increase in the number of beds is critical to meet the fast growing demand.

Your Committee also finds that a sixty-bed expansion of the Hale Ho'ola Hamakua long-term care facility, the construction of a sixteen-bed Alzheimer and forty-nine bed long-term care facility at Kula Hospital, and the renovation and expansion of the emergency room at Maui Memorial Medical Center are critically needed to increase access to long-term and emergency care services and to enhance the overall quality of care for patients living in the rural communities that they serve.

Your Committee finds that the department of accounting and general services is not the appropriate expending agency and has amended this measure to replace that department with the department of health.

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. 2580, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2580, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.