STAND. COM. REP. NO. 572

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 1369

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2023

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Health and Human Services, to which was referred S.B. No. 1369 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE REPEAL OF ACT 212, SESSION LAWS OF HAWAII 2021, AS AMENDED BY ACT 150, SESSION LAWS OF HAWAII 2022,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to repeal the requirement to transfer the Oahu Regional Health Care System in its entirety from the Hawaii Health Systems Corporation to the Department of Health.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Health. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the University of Hawai‘i System and Oahu Regional Health Care System.

Your Committee finds that Act 212, Session Laws of Hawaii 2021, initiated the transfer of the Oahu Regional Health Care System to the Department of Health and required the two to establish a working group to facilitate the transition. The working group determined the transition would require at least 2.5 years to complete, approximately $10,300,000 to effectuate the transition, and roughly $5,000,000 per year to maintain operations. Recognizing that the protracted timeline and estimated costs to implement and maintain the transition may outweigh the transition's anticipated benefits, this measure would repeal the requirement to transfer the Oahu Regional Health Care System to the Department of Health.

Your Committee notes that, per testimony received by your Committee, the transfer of the Oahu Regional Health Care System to the Department of Health may warrant reevaluation. Therefore, amendments to this measure are necessary to allow for further review.

Your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Deleting language that would have repealed the requirement to transfer the Oahu Regional Health Care System in its entirety from the Hawaii Health Systems Corporation to the Department of Health;

(2) Inserting language that requires by December 31, 2027, the transfer of the Oahu Regional Health Care System in its entirety from the Hawaii Health Systems Corporation to the Department of Health; and

(3) 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 and Human Services that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1369, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1369, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committees on Judiciary and Ways and Means.

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

________________________________

JOY A. SAN BUENAVENTURA, Chair