THE SENATE

S.B. NO.

1235

TWENTY-NINTH LEGISLATURE, 2017

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

relating to health.

 

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 


PART I

     SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that Hāna, Maui, is one of the most isolated areas in the State.  Hāna town is fifty-seven miles from Wailuku, a trip that takes approximately two hours along a single lane road with six hundred seventeen turns and fifty-six one-lane bridges.  The district is made up of small, isolated settlements scattered over two hundred thirty-three square miles.  Many of the villages are located a minimum of forty-five minutes from the main town of Hāna.  Many homes do not have basic utilities, such as electricity, telephones, and running water.

     The legislature further finds that Hāna Health was established pursuant to Act 263, Session Laws of Hawaii 1996, to transition the Hāna Medical Center from a state-operated facility to a nonprofit community health center designed to meet the specific needs of the area.  In the twenty years since, Hāna Health has operated effectively and worked closely with the department of health's family health services.

     Operating since 1997, the purpose of Hāna Health is to improve the general health and well-being of the Hāna community through the provision of medical care and other social, economic, and health-related programs.  Hāna Health is the only health care provider in the Hāna district, serving the primary health care and emergent medical needs of residents and visitors alike.  Hāna has been designated by the federal government as a medically underserved population, a primary care health professional shortage area, a dental health professional shortage area, and a mental health professional shortage area.  In September 2002, Hāna Health was designated as a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC).

     The legislature additionally finds that because of Hāna's relative isolation, Hāna Health provides a hybrid of services.  Unlike most primary care clinics, Hāna Health must also coordinate activities with the ambulance service and provide assistance in stabilizing patients with life-threatening illnesses or traumatic injuries.  These services are required twenty-four hours a day because the center is the only full service health care provider in the district.  The coordination of emergency services and provision of life support care is absolutely essential to the 2,500 residents of Hāna and the six hundred thousand tourists who visit annually.

     Hāna Health has been providing primary and urgent medical care, oral health care, mental and behavioral health care, pre-packaged medications in lieu of a full pharmacy, laboratory testing, and limited transportation and home health services for those with mobility problems in this rural community since its inception.  Additional Hāna Health programs include:

     (1)  The Hāna Fresh Farm, which provides food for Hāna Health's nutrition programs and includes a Hawaiian medicinal garden;

     (2)  The Healthy Lifestyles Program, designed to support patients managing a chronic health condition, which includes Hāna Fresh meals and personalized fitness plans;

     (3)  Rx for Good Health, which supports Hāna Health patients to adopt a diet rich in farm fresh produce through "prescriptions" for organic fruits and vegetables at the Hāna Fresh Farm stand; and

     (4)  The Walk It to Win It Challenge, a walking program aimed at helping student in grades 3 through 8 learn about and adopt healthy lifestyles, including proper nutrition and regular exercise.

PART II

     SECTION 2.  The legislature finds that the Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center was established in 1972 to provide health services for the federally designated medically underserved Waianae coast with operational funds granted through the Department of Health and Human Services.  The legislature further finds that consistent with the Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center's mission, the center currently serves 35,000 patients annually; of the patients served, forty-five per cent are Native Hawaiian, followed by Asian and other Pacific Islanders, at twenty-four per cent.  Seventy per cent of patients are at one hundred per cent of the federal poverty level or below, nine per cent are uninsured, and fifty-nine per cent are participants of the State's medicaid program.

     The legislature further finds that the Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center's emergency room is one of the most heavily utilized on Oahu, serving 13,500 patients through a total of 24,000 visits in 2015 to 2016.  The Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center emergency medical services provide a safety net for the residents of the Waianae coast.  Increased homelessness, changing economic conditions, and growing behavioral health issues continue to increase the demand for emergency medical services in the region.  The twenty-four-hour emergency services provided by the Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center help address the issue of geographic isolation faced by the communities located on the most western point of Oahu.

PART III

     SECTION 3.  The legislature finds that Hāna Health's twenty-four-hour emergency medical services programs and the Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center are linked to both the state emergency medical service system and the state plan for disaster response.  These facilities are the remaining two freestanding, non-hospital based, emergency medical facilities that are part of this essential system of emergency response in the State.  Based on the history and investment of the State in Hāna Health and the Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center over the years, the legislature finds that a long term funding option is necessary to ensure the stability of the provision of emergency services by those providers.  Therefore, the purpose of this Act is to:

     (1)  Appropriate funds to Hāna Health to continue Hāna Health's ability to meet the ongoing needs of the isolated Hāna community;

     (2)  Appropriate funds to the Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center to assist with the operation of its twenty-four-hour emergency medical room to continue to serve the residents of the Waianae coast; and

     (3)  Require funding for Hāna Health and the Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center's emergency services to be included in the department of health's base budget beginning with the 2018-2019 fiscal year.

     SECTION 4.  There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $1,500,000 or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2017-2018 as a grant pursuant to chapter 42F, Hawaii Revised Statutes, to support Hāna Health.

     The sum appropriated shall be expended by the department of health for the purposes of this Act.

     SECTION 5.  There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $1,925,000 or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2017-2018 as a grant pursuant to chapter 42F, Hawaii Revised Statutes, to the Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center for operation of its twenty-four-hour emergency room.

     The sum appropriated shall be expended by the department of health for the purposes of this Act.

     SECTION 6.  Funds necessary for the operation of Hāna Health and Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center's emergency services shall be included in the department of health's base budget beginning with the 2018-2019 fiscal year.

     SECTION 7.  This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2017.

 

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 


 

Report Title:

Hana Health; Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center; Appropriation

 

Description:

Appropriates funds as a grant for the continued support of Hāna Health in Hāna, Maui.  Appropriates funds as a grant to the Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center for operation of its twenty-four-hour emergency room.  Requires funds necessary for the operation of Hāna Health and Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center's emergency services to be included in the department of health's base budget beginning with the 2018-2019 fiscal year.

 

 

 

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.