28
THE SENATE                           S.R. NO.              S.D. 1
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 1999                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________


                    SENATE  RESOLUTION

  REQUESTING THE PATIENTS' BILL OF RIGHTS TASK FORCE TO STUDY THE
    ADVISABILITY AND FEASIBILITY OF CREATING A DATA BANK WITH
    PROVIDER INFORMATION FOR ACCESS BY HEALTH CARE CONSUMERS.


 1        WHEREAS, a patient's selection of a health care provider
 2   is an important decision from the standpoint of a health
 3   consumer's perspective; and
 4   
 5        WHEREAS, selection of a health care provider could affect
 6   the right diagnosis or proper treatment of an illness or
 7   disease; and 
 8   
 9        WHEREAS, there is no easily accessible source in Hawaii
10   for information about health care providers that would give a
11   patient important information and some insight about a health
12   care provider, whom the patient may consider selecting for the
13   patient or the patient's family; and
14   
15        WHEREAS, according to a comprehensive survey conducted by
16   OmniTrak Group, Inc., a local polling company, Hawaii residents
17   strongly favor having access to more information about their
18   health care providers, other than through the usual provider
19   referrals, word-of-mouth, or yellow page listings; and
20   
21        WHEREAS, an Omnitrak survey of health consumers found that
22   the following percentages want the following information on
23   health care providers:
24   
25        (1)  83% about board certification in a specialty;
26   
27        (2)  81% about medical education;
28   
29        (3)  79% about criminal convictions;
30   
31        (4)  78% about licensure restrictions in Hawaii or in
32             other states;
33   
34        (5)  73% about physician scores on quality care
35             measurements;
36   

 
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                                  S.R. NO.              S.D. 1
                                                        
                                                        


 1        (6)  72% about satisfaction ratings by other patients; and
 2   
 3        (7)  72% about successful lawsuits by patients;
 4   
 5   and
 6   
 7        WHEREAS, in September 1995, the federal General Accounting
 8   Office reported that forty states have some type of public
 9   distribution of health care data, and actively provide
10   information to the public about provider performance; and
11   
12        WHEREAS, the Pew Health Professions Commission recommends
13   that professional licensing boards provide public information
14   relevant to a licensee upon request, in a clear and
15   comprehensive manner; and
16   
17        WHEREAS, a health care provider's right to privacy must be
18   balanced against a consumer's right to know about that
19   provider; and
20   
21        WHEREAS, Act 178, Session Laws of Hawaii (SLH) 1998,
22   required the Insurance Commissioner to convene a task force
23   comprised of various members from the public and private
24   sectors to review various laws which provide protection of
25   patient's rights and responsibilities in regards to health
26   care; now, therefore,
27   
28        BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twentieth Legislature
29   of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 1999, that the task
30   force created by Act 178, SLH 1998, study the advisability and
31   feasibility of creating a data bank with provider information
32   for access by health care consumers; and
33   
34        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force report its
35   findings and recommendations to the legislature no later than
36   twenty days before the commencement of the Regular Session of
37   2000, which shall include the following:
38   
39        (1)  Assessment of the demand for health care provider
40             information;
41   
42        (2)  Current information about health care providers that

 
 
 
 
 
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                                  S.R. NO.              S.D. 1
                                                        
                                                        


 1             are available from state agencies;
 2   
 3        (3)  Issues relating to protecting the privacy rights of
 4             health care providers;
 5   
 6        (4)  Designation of the appropriate state agency, or
 7             creation of a new agency, to disseminate information
 8             about health care providers;
 9   
10        (5)  Assessment of the costs of providing public
11             information about health care providers; and
12   
13        (6)  Recommendations for legislative enactments or for
14             administrative rule changes, or both;
15   
16   and
17   
18        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Hawaii Insurers Council be
19   included in the study; and
20   
21        BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this
22   Resolution be transmitted to the Insurance Commissioner,
23   Director of Health, Administrator of the Disabilities
24   Compensation Division of the Department of Labor and Industrial
25   Relations, Hawaii Medical Service Association, Kaiser
26   Permanente, American Association of Retired Persons, Hawaii
27   Coalition for Health, Legal Aid Society of Hawaii, Hawaii
28   Medical Association, Hawaii Nurses' Association, Hawaii
29   Insurers Council, and Healthcare Association of Hawaii.