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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.C.R. NO. |
95 |
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TWENTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2006 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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RESOLUTION
REQUESTING THE LEGISLATIVE REFERENCE BUREAU TO CONDUCT a study AND ANALYSIS OF THE ADEQUACY OF payments for health care funded by the state and the adequacy of payments for health care using rates established by the state.
WHEREAS, the critical financial condition of hospitals, long term care facilities, and other health care providers has been well-documented recently in a series of articles by Helen Altonn that were published by the Honolulu Star-Bulletin and an article by Rob Perez that was published by the Honolulu Advertiser; and
WHEREAS, these articles made the following points:
(1) Patients demand to be diagnosed and treated with the latest technology, which is very expensive;
(2) The need for expensive institutionalized long term care is substantial and is expected to grow as the "baby boomers" age;
(3) Health care facilities have incurred high costs related to potential terrorist threats and other emergencies;
(4) Providers are receiving insufficient payments for health care from government payers, private insurance payers, and patients who do not have insurance; and
(5) Hawaii’s hospitals have incurred more than $500,000,000 in losses due to bad debt and charity care since 2000; and
WHEREAS, the State pays for a considerable amount of health care and also controls certain types of payments for health care made to providers; and
WHEREAS, it is in the public interest to ensure that health care payments made with state funds or controlled by the State are sufficient to cover the actual costs of care; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-Third Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2006, the Senate concurring, that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to conduct an analysis of the adequacy of the health care payment rates established by the State and state-funded health care payments and reimbursements to health care providers, and the relationship of the government standard to reimbursement of health plan insurers; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the study conducted by Legislative Reference Bureau shall include:
(1) Recommendations for increasing state-funded health care payments to providers that adequately reimburse for the actual costs of health care services provided; and
(2) A method of updating payments and reimbursements to health care providers every two years to keep pace with inflation; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislative Reference Bureau shall report findings and recommendations to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2007; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this concurrent resolution be transmitted to the Governor, the Director of Health, the Director of Human Services, the Insurance Commissioner, the Acting Director of the Legislative Reference Bureau, the Chief Executive Officer of the Healthcare Association of Hawaii, and the Chief Executive Officer of the Hawaii Medical Association.
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OFFERED BY: |
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Report Title:
State-funded Health care payments; reimbursements.