STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2910

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 874

S.D. 2

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2026

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection, to which was referred S.B. No. 874, S.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO VETERINARY MEDICINE,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to:

(1) Require veterinarians to provide a written prescription, upon the request of a client, for any animal patient of a client with whom the veterinarian has established an existing veterinarian-client-patient relationship, to be filled at the pharmacy of the client's choosing;

(2) Allow pharmacies licensed in the State to dispense medications prescribed by veterinarians; and

(3) Authorize the Hawaii Board of Veterinary Medicine to establish penalties, which may include fines or suspension or revocation of a license.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Maui Humane Society, Animal Interfaith Alliance in Britain, Hawaiian Humane Society, Hawaii Veterinary Medical Association, and fourteen individuals.

Your Committee finds that pet owners in the State face challenges finding affordable veterinary care. In a 2024 survey of pet owners in the State, forty-five percent identified cost as a top challenge. In the same survey, thirty-three percent of pet owners said they struggled to afford veterinary care. Despite these high costs, seventy-five percent of pet owners took their pets to see a veterinarian at least once each year. This measure would introduce competition in the provision of prescribed medications for pets and enable pet owners to seek more economical prices, including at licensed pharmacies.

Your Committee has amended this measure by inserting an effective date of July 1, 2050, to encourage further discussion.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 874, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 874, S.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection,

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JARRETT KEOHOKALOLE, Chair