STAND. COM. REP. NO.  136

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2016

RE:   H.B. No. 1686

      H.D. 1

Honorable Joseph M. Souki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Health, to which was referred H.B. No. 1686 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to facilitate involuntary hospitalizations and other forms of treatment for the protection of mentally ill individuals and the public, by removing the current requirement that the threat of dangerousness be imminent.

The Hawaii Association of Professional Nurses and numerous individuals testified in support of this measure.  The Office of the Public Defender testified in opposition to this measure.  The Department of Health, Department of the Attorney General, Queen's Health Systems, Hawaii Academy of Physician Assistants, and Hawaii Disability Rights Center provided comments on this measure.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Reverting to the original threshold of "imminently dangerous to self or others" and defining that term to mean that, without intervention, the person will likely remain dangerous to the person's self or others within the next ninety days;

     (2)  Changing the effective date to July 1, 2070, to encourage further discussion; 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 H.B. No. 1686, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1686, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Judiciary.

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

____________________________

DELLA AU BELATTI, Chair