STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3441

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: H.B. No. 1812

H.D. 3

S.D. 2

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2018

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred H.B. No. 1812, H.D. 3, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HEALTH,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

(1) Authorize a health care surrogate to act as a Medicaid authorized representative to assist a patient with a Medicaid application and eligibility process and in communications with the Department of Human Services; and

(2) Specify the duties and obligations of the surrogate.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Human Services, Healthcare Association of Hawaii, Kaiser Permanente Hawai‘i, The Queen's Health Systems, Aloha Nursing Rehab Center, One Kalakaua Senior Living, and O‘ahu County Committee on Legislative Priorities of the Democratic Party of Hawai‘i.

Your Committee finds that, in 2017, the Department of Human Services implemented new procedures to allow an appointed surrogate to act as a patient's authorized representative to make health care decisions relate to Medicaid, including the decision to apply for Medicaid benefits. The Department later suspended those procedures following a determination that there were other specific issues relating to state and federal surrogacy laws that needed to be addressed and clarified in order for a surrogate to act as a Medicaid authorized representative. This measure will explicitly allow a surrogate to act as a Medicaid authorized representative and ensure that a surrogate acting in such a role agrees to the federal and state laws regarding authorized representatives.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Making it effective upon approval; and

(2) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1812, H.D. 3, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1812, H.D. 3, S.D. 2.

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

________________________________

BRIAN T. TANIGUCHI, Chair