STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2427

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 2599

       S.D. 2

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fifth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2010

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 2599, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HEALTH INSURANCE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to require insurers to provide coverage for colorectal cancer screening.

Specifically, this measure requires accident and health insurers, mutual benefit societies, and fraternal benefit societies to provide this colorectal screening by colonoscopy and any other screening modalities that have received a grade of A or B from the United States Preventive Services Task Force.

     Your Committee finds that colorectal cancer is currently the third most common cancer in the United States and the second most common cause of cancer deaths among both men and women.  However, colorectal cancer is preventable when detected early, and the cost for screening is negligible compared to the cost of treating colorectal cancer after a delayed detection.  Your Committee finds that mandating colorectal examinations and other screening modalities as a required provision in health insurance coverage will not only reduce health care costs, but will also save lives and enable the early treatment of colorectal cancer.

     Your Committee has made technical nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of accuracy and clarity.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2599, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2599, S.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

____________________________

DONNA MERCADO KIM, Chair