STAND. COM. REP. NO.  1937

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2007

RE:   S.B. No. 1792

      S.D. 3

      H.D. 2

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2007

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Finance, to whichh was referred S.B. No. 1792, S.D. 3, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE HAWAII HEALTH SYSTEMS CORPORATION,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to advance the State's commitment to provide quality health care for the people of the Hawaii, by:

(1)  Adopting the original task force recommendation of community-based governance;

(2)  Establishing a Maui Regional Affiliate Corporation Pilot Program (MRACPP) for the Maui region, to be governed by a community-based regional board of directors; and

(3)  Providing the necessary authority for the MRACPP to accomplish the goal of community-based governance.

     The Mayor, Council Chair, Councilmember of Maui County, Maui Memorial Medical Center, Kaiser Permanente, Maui Chest Medicine, and many concerned individuals supported this bill.  The State Procurement Office did not support this measure.  The Chair and a member of the Kauai County Council; Mayor of Hawaii County; Hawaii Health Systems Corporation (HHSC); Board of Directors of HHSC and affiliated hospitals, including Hilo Medical Center, Kona Community Hospital, West Kauai Medical Center, Kohala Hospital, Ka‘u Hospital, and Leahi Hospital; Ka‘u Rural Health Community Association, Inc.; several board members of the Mahelona Medical Center Charitable Foundation; Hawaii Government Employees Association; Roselani Place Assisted Living Facility, and numerous concerned individuals opposed this bill.  The Department of Accounting and General Services, Office of Information Practices, International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 142, and National Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems submitted comments.

     Your Committee has amended this bill by making technical, nonsubstantive changes.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Finance that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1792, S.D. 3, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1792, S.D. 3, H.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Finance,

____________________________

MARCUS R. OSHIRO, Chair