STAND.
COM. REP. NO. 1407
Honolulu, Hawaii
, 2023
RE: S.B. No. 1378
S.D. 1
Honorable Scott K. Saiki
Speaker, House of Representatives
Thirty-Second State Legislature
Regular Session of 2023
State of Hawaii
Sir:
Your Committee on Health & Homelessness, to which was referred S.B. No. 1378, S.D. 1, entitled:
"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO UNLICENSED CARE HOMES,"
begs leave to report as follows:
The
purpose of this measure is to:
(1) Clarify who is prohibited from knowingly referring or transferring patients to an uncertified or unlicensed care facility; and
(2) Repeal the provision that a landlord, under specified conditions, shall not be deemed to be providing home care services or operating a care facility that requires a license.
Your Committee finds that the
prevalence of unlicensed care homes and facilities in the State continues to
pose significant health and consumer protection issues for Hawaii's elderly and
vulnerable populations. Although to
date, the Department of Health has conducted over two hundred investigations
and closed ten unlicensed care homes or facilities, licensed care home
operators and other persons continue to refer or transfer patients to
unlicensed facilities. This measure aims
to provide additional safeguards for the public by protecting aged and
vulnerable persons and ensuring quality of care by clarifying the types of
persons or entities who are prohibited from knowingly referring patients to uncertified
or unlicensed care facilities.
This measure also repeals an
exclusion that has allowed bad actors to operate care homes without a
license. Without the repeal proposed by
this measure, caregivers at unlicensed care homes cannot be checked for
credentials to provide proper care or confirmed as having complete background
checks. This substantially increases the
risk of substandard quality of care or living conditions on the State's
vulnerable population.
As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Health & Homelessness that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1378, S.D. 1, and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce.
Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Health & Homelessness,
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____________________________ DELLA AU BELATTI, Chair |
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