STAND. COM. REP. NO.  52

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2009

RE:   H.B. No. 343

      H.D. 1

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Fifth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2009

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Health, to which was referred H.B. No. 343 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO RURAL PRIMARY HEALTH CARE TRAINING,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to provide relief to medically underserved areas of the state by increasing the number of primary care health providers in rural areas of Hawaii through the:

1)   Development of a statewide Rural Primary Health Care Training Program (Program); and

2)   Expansion of the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine's (JABSOM) Family Residency Program to provide rural primary health care services.

JABSOM, the Hawaii Health Systems Corporation (HHSC), HHSC's Hilo Medical Center Medical Group Practice Director, County of Hawaii, Hawaii Medical Association, Hawaii Primary Care Association, Hawaii Medical Service Association, League of Women Voters of Hawaii, and Hawaii Association for Justice supported this bill.

     Your Committee has amended this bill by:

(1)  Including the four major counties of the state to participate in the development of the Program, beginning with the County of Hawaii;

     (2)  Appropriating an unspecified amount for JABSOM's Family Medicine Residence Program and the statewide Rural Primary Health Care Training Program;

     (3)  Changing the effective date to July 1, 2020, to encourage further discussion; and

     (4)  Making technical, nonsubstantive changes for clarity, consistency, and style.

     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. 343, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 343, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Higher Education.

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

____________________________

RYAN I. YAMANE, Chair