STAND. COM. REP. NO. 670-22

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2022

RE: H.B. No. 1548

H.D. 1

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2022

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Health, Human Services, & Homelessness and Higher Education & Technology, to which was referred H.B. No. 1548 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO GRADUATE MEDICAL EDUCATION,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to appropriate funds to the John A. Burns School of Medicine to expand medical school and residency training through the United States Department of Veterans Affairs graduate medical education programs.

Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the John A. Burns School of Medicine at the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa, Hawaii Psychiatric Medical Association, Hawai‘i State Rural Health Association, Healthcare Association of Hawaii, Hawaii Primary Care Association, Hawai‘i Pacific Health, The Queen's Health Systems, and one individual. Your Committees received comments on this measure from the Department of Budget and Finance.

Your Committees find that many Hawaii residents are unable to obtain timely and appropriate health care due to shortages of health care providers in the State. Your Committees further find that there is strong collaboration between the John A. Burns School of Medicine and the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. The Department of Veterans Affairs currently invests in Hawaii-based residency positions using a separate federal pool of support. Expanding capacity for training medical students and residents through the Department of Veterans Affairs, including the recruitment of additional practicing faculty to Veterans Affairs health care facilities in the State, will leverage health care delivery capacity and the retention of medical students and residents as practicing physicians in Hawaii.

Your Committees have amended this measure by:

(1) Changing the appropriation to an unspecified amount; and

(2) Changing the effective date to July 1, 2060, to encourage further discussion.

Should your Committee on Finance deliberate on this measure further, your Committees respectfully request that it consider appropriating $6,700,000 to expand medical school and residency training through the Department of Veterans Affairs graduate medical education programs.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Health, Human Services, & Homelessness and Higher Education & Technology that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1548, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1548, H.D. 1, and be referred to your Committee on Finance.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Health, Human Services, & Homelessness and Higher Education & Technology,

____________________________ GREGG TAKAYAMA, Chair

____________________________ RYAN I. YAMANE, Chair