STAND. COM. REP. NO.  546-08

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2008

RE:   H.B. No. 2315

      H.D. 1

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2008

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committees on Health and Human Services & Housing, to which was referred H.B. No. 2315 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO DENTISTS,"

beg leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to ensure access to needed dental services by requiring Medicaid rates of payment to dentists to be based on the 75^th percentile of the usual, customary, and reasonable fee established by insurers for services provided by dentists.

     The Hawaii Dental Association supported this bill.  The Department of Human Services (DHS) submitted comments.

     Your Committees heard testimony provided by DHS stating that the increase in payment to dentists provided by this bill will result in an annual cost increase of approximately 43.5 percent or about $2,900,000, $1,300,000 of which will be state funds.

     Your Committees have amended this bill by changing the effective date to January 1, 2050, to encourage further discussion.

     As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Health and Human Services & Housing that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2315, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2315, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Finance.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Health and Human Services & Housing,

____________________________ MAILE SHIMABUKURO, Chair

____________________________ JOSHUA B. GREEN, M.D., Chair