STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1464-18

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2018

RE: S.B. No. 2244

S.D. 1

H.D. 1

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2018

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Labor & Public Employment and Health & Human Services, to which was referred S.B. No. 2244, S.D. 1, entitled:

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

beg leave to report as follows:

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 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.

The Department of Human Resources for the City and County of Honolulu and Oahu County Committee on Legislative Priorities of the Democratic Party of Hawai‘i testified in support of this measure. The Department of Health and Department of Labor and Industrial Relations supported the intent of this measure. The Hawaii Substance Abuse Coalition and Work Injury Medical Association of Hawaii provided comments on this measure.

Your Committees have amended this measure by:

(1) Specifying that the physician shall execute the agreement as soon as the employee's condition improves if the qualifying injured employee is unable to physically or mentally execute the written agreement due to the injury;

(2) Specifying that the employee shall not be responsible for the payment of the medication prescribed; and

(3) Changing the effective date to January 1, 2050, to encourage further discussion.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Labor & Public Employment and Health & Human Services that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2244, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2244, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Labor & Public Employment and Health & Human Services,

____________________________ JOHN M. MIZUNO, Chair

____________________________ AARON LING JOHANSON, Chair