STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2700

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 2120

       S.D. 1

Honorable Shan S. Tsutsui

President of the Senate

Twenty-Sixth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2012

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 2120 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HEALTH,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to increase payments for physician services for medicaid-eligible persons, including fee-for-service and QUEST-eligible individuals, and the QUEST expanded care program.

     Specifically, this measure:

     (1)  Appropriates an unspecified amount of funds for the 2012-2013 fiscal year to the Department of Human Services to increase payments for physician services to medicaid-eligible persons, including fee-for-service and QUEST-eligible individuals, and the QUEST expanded care program; and

     (2)  Requires the Department of Human Services to include in its budget request for each year of the 2013-2015 fiscal biennium a sum at least equal to the sum appropriated for fiscal year 2012-2013, in addition to its baseline medicaid request.

     Your Committee received written comments in support of this measure from The Hawaii Disability Rights Center and Hawaii Medical Association.

Your Committee finds that physicians are not being compensated for essential services at a level sufficient to cover costs.  Increasing medicaid reimbursement rates for physicians is important to fairly compensate physicians who treat medicaid-eligible individuals, and higher reimbursement rates will create sufficient incentives for physicians to continue to provide the care that these recipients require.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by changing the effective date to July 1, 2050, to facilitate further discussion on the measure.

     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. 2120, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2120, S.D. 1.

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

____________________________

DAVID Y. IGE, Chair