STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2641

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 3208

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2022

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Health, to which was referred S.B. No. 3208 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HEALTHCARE PRECEPTORS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

(1) Amend the definition of "preceptor" and "volunteer-based supervised clinical training rotation" to improve accessibility for providers to receive income tax credits for acting as preceptors; and

(2) Include the Director of Health on the Preceptor Credit Assurance Committee.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Health, Hawai‘i State Center for Nursing, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, The Queen's Health Systems, Hawai‘i —American Nurses Association, Hawai‘i Pacific Health, Hawai‘i Primary Care Association, Hawai‘i Association of Professional Nurses, and four individuals. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Department of Taxation, Department of Budget and Finance, and Tax Foundation of Hawaii.

Your Committee finds that the State faces a shortage of primary care providers, such as physicians, advanced practice registered nurses, and pharmacists. Although Hawaii students are interested in pursuing careers in health care, Hawaii schools lack qualified preceptors to teach and train these students. To encourage the participation of preceptors, existing law provides an income tax credit to health care preceptors volunteering to instruct, supervise, and train students and resident doctors. However, only a small number of preceptors met the credit's eligibility requirements due to the its qualifying criteria. This measure amends the health care preceptor tax credit law to expand its eligibility requirements.

Your Committee has amended this measure by 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 Health that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 3208, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 3208, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committees on Commerce and Consumer Protection and Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Health,

________________________________

JARRETT KEOHOKALOLE, Chair