STAND. COM. REP. NO.  1166-14

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2014

RE:   S.B. No. 2032

      S.D. 2

      H.D. 1

Honorable Joseph M. Souki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Seventh State Legislature

Regular Session of 2014

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Health, to which was referred S.B. No. 2032, S.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO VIOLENCE AGAINST HEALTH CARE PERSONNEL,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to protect medical professionals by expanding the scope of the offense of Assault in the Second Degree to protect additional types of medical professionals, including those working in a medical clinic or federally qualified health center, as opposed to just emergency services personnel or medical professionals working in a hospital emergency room.

The Healthcare Association of Hawaii; Hawaii Pacific Health; United Public Workers, AFSCME, Local 646, AFL-CIO; Hawaii Government Employees Association, AFSCME Local 152, AFL-CIO; Hawaii Primary Care Association; Kaiser Permanente Hawaii; The Queen's Medical Center; Hawaii State Center for Nursing; 1,978 "Conventional People"; and two concerned individuals testified in support of this measure.  The Hawaii Association of Professional Nurses provided comments.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Including certified nurse midwives and clinical nurse specialists as medical service providers protected by this offense by replacing the terms "nurse practitioners" and "certified registered nurse anesthetists" with the term "advanced practice registered nurses," which is the ubiquitous licensing title for all nurses listed herein;

     (2)  Making it effective on July 1, 2014; and

     (3)  Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments 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 S.B. No. 2032, S.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2032, S.D. 2, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Judiciary.

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

____________________________

DELLA AU BELATTI, Chair