STAND. COM. REP. NO. 412-20

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2020

RE: H.B. No. 2502

H.D. 1

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2020

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce, to which was referred H.B. No. 2502, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HEALTH,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to require the State Health Planning and Development Agency to consider the relationship to the existing health care system of the area, including the availability of workforce, as part of its certificate of need review.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from Liberty Dialysis-Hawaii and Healthcare Association of Hawaii.

Your Committee received comments on this measure from The Queen's Health Systems and Kaiser Permanente.

Your Committee finds that there is a shortage of health care professionals statewide, which is especially acute in rural areas. Your Committee also finds that there is a demand for an increase in health care facilities in the State's rural areas. However, each new health care facility that opens must hire qualified health care professionals to staff the facility. Unfortunately, this situation often results in the new facility seeking to hire professionals from existing facilities in the local area. Your Committee believes that recruitment of this nature may adversely affect the quality of medical care at existing facilities by decreasing the ratio of health care professionals to patients and forcing the existing facility to increase overtime or hire temporary staff to cover the resulting staffing shortfall. While your Committee recognizes that there is a demand for expanded health care services in rural areas, it also recognizes that policies must be adopted to protect the viability and quality of existing health care services while not restricting the ability of new health care facilities to open in rural areas.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2502, H.D. 1, and recommends that it be referred to your Committee on Finance.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce,

____________________________

ROY M. TAKUMI, Chair