STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2777

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    S.B. No. 2506

       S.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2020

State of Hawaii

 

Sir:

 

     Your Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Health, to which was referred S.B. No. 2506 entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE MENTAL HEALTH AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE SPECIAL FUND,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to authorize the Mental Health and Substance Abuse Special Fund to be used for capital improvements.

 

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Health, one member of the Hawaii County Council, Hawaii Psychological Association, Hawaii Substance Abuse Coalition, Hawaii Disability Rights Center, Community Alliance on Prisons, Mental Health America of Hawaii, Catholic Charities Hawaii, Hawaii Kai Homeless Task Force, and one individual.

 

     Your Committee finds that there are individuals who enter and reenter the health care system through emergency departments, often under a designation for emergency examination.  Upon discharge but before long-term rehabilitation and treatment may continue, some of these individuals will require several days or weeks to deescalate from their crisis in a controlled environment.  Also, if they are reintegrated to the community prematurely, the cycle of relapse and decompensation often continues.

 

     Your Committee further finds that subacute residential stabilization services, otherwise known as crisis stabilization beds, and transitional placement will bridge the gap for individuals in crisis for whom acute inpatient hospitalization is unnecessary and will provide the needed environments where individuals with severe and persistent mental illness are able to live semi‑independently but can return quickly to higher levels of care when they start to decompensate.  However, Hawaii's treatment resources do not currently include crisis stabilization beds or supported transition units.  Therefore, it is necessary to find ways to identify underutilized state facilities and existing resources to expand program operations for crisis stabilization beds and transitional placement units.

 

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

 

     (1)  Inserting language that requires the Department of Health to:

 

          (A)  Identify capital improvement projects that should be made with funds from the Mental Health and Substance Abuse Special Fund to improve the continuum of care for behavioral health;

 

          (B)  Identify the amounts required for the identified capital improvement projects;

 

          (C)  Develop plans to investigate whether private non‑profits could operate state facilities for underused beds, supplement state funding to remodel through fundraising, and access non-state funds to support operations; and

 

          (D)  Submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the Legislature prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2021; 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 Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Health that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2506, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2506, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

 

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

 

 

 

________________________________

ROSALYN H. BAKER, Chair