Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2005

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Health, to which was referred H.C.R. No. 11 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this concurrent resolution is to request the Auditor to assess the social and financial effects of requiring health insurers to offer coverage for drug and alcohol screening and counseling in emergency rooms, or as part of primary care.

The Mililani Town Anti-Drug Committee and the Representative of the 38^th District which encompasses Mililani and Mililani Mauka supported this concurrent resolution. The Hawaii Medical Service Association supported the intent of this measure.

Your Committee finds that emergency room physicians are in a unique position to assess if incoming patients are in need of drug and alcohol screening, and a study of the social and financial benefits of these services would provide important information that could be used to formulate further legislation in this area.

Your Committee, however, also finds that drug or alcohol counseling would be inappropriate and ineffective in an emergency room setting. In addition, there are issues of confidentiality raised in cases where primary care physicians would be allowed to provide screening services without patient permission and consent.

As such, this concurrent resolution has been amended 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. 11, as amended herein, and recommends that it be referred to the Committee on Finance in the form attached hereto as H.C.R. No. 11, H.D. 1.