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.B. No. 1340 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this bill is to further protect patients' rights by providing several alternative procedures in the Patients' Bill of Rights and Responsibilities Act for an external review of the final internal decision of a health plan denying coverage to a plan member, which procedures apply depending on whether the health plan is subject to the federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). In addition this bill:

The Hawaii Coalition for Health and several concerned individuals testified in support of this measure. The Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Kaiser Permanente, and Hawaii Medical Service Association opposed this measure.

Your Committee finds that this bill is necessitated by a Hawaii Supreme Court decision that found that ERISA invalidated the external review process in the Patient's Bill of Rights Act, for health plans subject to ERISA.

Your Committee has amended this bill by:

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 H.B. No. 1340, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1340, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committees on Consumer Protection & Commerce and Judiciary.