STAND.
COM. REP. NO. 1590
Honolulu, Hawaii
, 2021
RE: H.C.R. No. 110
H.D. 1
Honorable Scott K. Saiki
Speaker, House of Representatives
Thirty-First State Legislature
Regular Session of 2021
State of Hawaii
Sir:
Your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce, to which was referred H.C.R. No. 110, H.D. 1, entitled:
"HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION REQUESTING THE AUDITOR TO UPDATE ITS REPORT NO. 12-09, WHICH ASSESSES THE SOCIAL AND FINANCIAL EFFECTS OF MANDATORY HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE FOR FERTILITY PRESERVATION PROCEDURES FOR PERSONS OF REPRODUCTIVE AGE WHO HAVE BEEN DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER AND WILL UNDERGO TREATMENT THAT, BASED ON A MEDICAL DETERMINATION BY THE PERSON'S PHYSICIAN, WILL MOST LIKELY CAUSE INFERTILITY,"
begs leave to report as follows:
The
purpose of this measure is to
request that the Auditor update its Report No. 12-09, which assesses the social
and financial effects of mandatory health insurance coverage for fertility
preservation procedures for persons of reproductive age who have been diagnosed
with cancer and who will undergo treatment likely to cause infertility.
Your Committee finds
that certain cancers and cancer treatment procedures may affect a person's
fertility by damaging the person's reproductive organs. Although fertility may be preserved through
preservation procedures, the high cost of these procedures and the narrow
window to obtain services means these procedures are unattainable for many
people. Your Committee further finds
that in 2012, the Legislature requested the Auditor to conduct a study to
assess the social and financial impacts of mandating insurance coverage for
fertility preservation procedures for persons of reproductive age who have been
diagnosed with cancer and will be undergoing treatment that might adversely
affect their fertility. However, because
of insufficient data at the time, the Auditor was unable to assess the social
and financial impacts of the proposed mandated coverage.
Your Committee notes
that since 2012, ten states have enacted fertility preservation coverage, and
the experience in those ten other states will allow the Auditor to evaluate
additional experiential data and assess actual financial impacts. Your Committee therefore believes that an
update to Report No. 12-09 is necessary to properly assess the cost and viability
of offering mandatory fertility preservation coverage, as such coverage may
increase overall health care insurance costs for the entire pool of insured
persons and could be considered a new mandate that would involve cost defrayment
by the State.
As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce that is attached to this report, your Committee concurs with the intent and purpose of H.C.R. No. 110, H.D. 1, and recommends its adoption.
Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce,
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____________________________ AARON LING JOHANSON, Chair |