THE SENATE	S.R. NO.	97
TWENTY-FIFTH LEGISLATURE, 2009
STATE OF HAWAII

SENATE RESOLUTION

requesting the Department of Health to review and assess the policies and procedures implemented by hospitals to reduce elective cesarean sections and induction of labor.

     WHEREAS, premature birth is the leading cause of newborn death, accounting for twenty-four per cent of infant deaths in the first month of life; and

     WHEREAS, the average cost of medical care in the first year of life is ten times greater for a premature infant than for an infant born full term; and

     WHEREAS, one out of every eight babies born in Hawaii are born prematurely; and

     WHEREAS, more than eight per cent of babies born in Hawaii are late pre-term births, with only thirty-four to thirty-six completed weeks of gestation; and

     WHEREAS, late pre-term births account for much of the increase in premature births in the past decade; and

     WHEREAS, the Healthy People 2010 objective proposed by the United States Department of Health and Human Services is that no more than 7.6 per cent of babies will be born pre-term; and

     WHEREAS, premature babies who survive may suffer lifelong consequences including cerebral palsy, mental retardation, chronic lung disease, and vision and hearing loss; and

     WHEREAS, late pre-term infants have a higher incidence of morbidity and mortality when compared with term infants; and

     WHEREAS, the rate of births by cesarean delivery has risen from more than eighteen per cent in 1999 to twenty-six per cent in 2006; and

     WHEREAS, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists guidelines call for confirmation of thirty-nine weeks gestation for single births for elective induction of labor under most circumstance; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-fifth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2009, that the Department of Health is requested to review and assess:

     (1)  The criteria used by hospitals and physicians for indications to elective inductions or cesarean sections; and

     (2)  The policies and procedures implemented by hospitals to reduce elective cesarean sections and induction of labor; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Health is requested to report its findings to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2010; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the report include:

     (1)  Statistics on the number of hospitals having policies and procedures relating to elective cesarean sections and inductions of labor prior to thirty-nine completed weeks of gestation;

     (2)  Statistics on the number of hospitals with policies and procedures in line with the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists guidelines; and

     (3)  Recommendations, including suggested legislation, on improving Hawaii's rate of premature births; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a certified copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the Director of Health.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title: 

Pre-term Births; Cesarean Sections; Induction of Labor