CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REP. NO. 95-18

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2018

RE: S.B. No. 2244

S.D. 1

H.D. 2

C.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2018

State of Hawaii

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2018

State of Hawaii

Sirs:

Your Committee on Conference on the disagreeing vote of the Senate to the amendments proposed by the House of Representatives in S.B. No. 2244, S.D. 1, H.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO WORKERS' COMPENSATION,"

having met, and after full and free discussion, has agreed to recommend and does recommend to the respective Houses the final passage of this bill in an amended form.

The purpose of this measure is to establish safety mechanisms within the workers' compensation system, similar to other areas of state law, to deter opioid abuse by:

(1) Requiring health care providers in the workers' compensation system who are authorized to prescribe opioids to adopt and maintain written policies for informed consent to opioid therapy in circumstances that carry elevated risk of dependency; and

(2) Establishing limits for concurrent opioid and benzodiazepine prescriptions in the workers' compensation system.

Your Committee on Conference finds that a nationwide drug epidemic, associated with prescription pain relieving drugs, is causing alarming rates of addiction, overdose, and death. Your Committee on Conference further finds that a number of states have also taken steps through their workers' compensation systems to stem over prescription of opioids to injured workers. Your Committee on Conference observes that existing law contains provisions similar to those encompassed by this measure for opioid prescriptions issued outside of the workers' compensation regime. Accordingly, your Committee on Conference finds that this measure will similarly reduce unnecessary opioid prescriptions to injured workers and limit opioid overdoses, as well as offer the same protections to patients in the State's workers' compensation system as to those outside of the system.

Your Committee on Conference has amended this measure by changing the effective date to upon approval.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the managers of your Committee on Conference that is attached to this report, your Committee on Conference is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2244, S.D. 1, H.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Final Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2244, S.D. 1, H.D. 2, C.D. 1.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the managers:

ON THE PART OF THE HOUSE

ON THE PART OF THE SENATE

____________________________ AARON LING JOHANSON Co-Chair	____________________________ JILL N. TOKUDA Chair
____________________________ JOHN M. MIZUNO Co-Chair	____________________________ ROSALYN H. BAKER Co-Chair
____________________________ ROY M. TAKUMI Co-Chair
____________________________ SYLVIA LUKE Co-Chair