STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2468

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 2883

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2022

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Human Services and Health, to which was referred S.B. No. 2883 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO MEDICAL FACILITIES,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to create a task force focused on the hiring and training of culturally accepted interpreters to assist non-English speaking populations seeking care at Hawaii Health Systems Corporation facilities.

Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from one member of the Hawai‘i County Council, Hawaii Health Systems Corporation, Hawaii Friends of Civil Rights, Hawai‘i Coalition for Immigrant Rights, Marshallese COVID-19 Task Force, Hawai‘i Public Health Institute, and three individuals. Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from one individual. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Office of Language Access and one individual.

Your Committees find that Limited-English-Proficient (LEP) persons face significant hurdles in communicating with health care professionals. The language barrier between patient and health care provider leads to poorer health outcomes among LEP persons. This has been highlighted during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, as Pacific Islanders and Compact of Free Association (COFA) recipients have had disproportionately higher rates of infection than that of people in the State as a whole. Your Committees further find that on December 20, 2020, the United States Congress reinstated Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance benefits to COFA recipients. With COFA recipients no longer a large portion of the State's uninsured population, state hospitals should be prepared to service these and other LEP populations. Therefore, this measure creates a task force focused on hiring and training culturally accepted interpreters to assist LEP populations seeking care at Hawaii Health Systems Corporation facilities.

Your Committees acknowledge the testimony of several stakeholders, which suggested that the task force be composed of different members than originally proposed. Your Committees also acknowledge the testimony of the Hawaii Health Systems Corporation, which raised concerns that it does not have the funds or resources to maintain a staff of certified translators with knowledge of medical terminology.

Therefore, your Committees have amended this measure by:

(1) Adding the Director of Human Services, one representative from The Queen's Health Systems, and four COFA community leaders to the task force;

(2) Removing two members of the language interpreters and translator community and two community health workers from the task force;

(3) Adding an appropriation to the Hawaii Health Systems Corporation to support the work of the task force;

(4) Changing the focus of the task force from LEP populations seeking care at the Hawaii Health Systems Corporation to any health care facility;

(5) Amending section 1 to reflect its amended purpose;

(6) Changing its effective date to accommodate the appropriation; and

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

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Human Services and Health that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2883, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2883, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Human Services and Health,

________________________________ JARRETT KEOHOKALOLE, Chair

________________________________ JOY A. SAN BUENAVENTURA, Chair