STAND. COM. REP. NO.2085

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2002

RE: S.B. No. 2777

 

 

Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2002

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Health and Human Services, to which was referred S.B. No. 2777 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to allow a person, a person's guardian, or agent, or surrogate with legal authority, to make healthcare decisions on behalf of the person to allow withholding cardiac resuscitation and artificial breathing or to revoke "comfort care only-do not resuscitate" (CCO-DNR) documents.

Your Committee received testimony in favor of this measure from the Department of Health, University of Hawaii, and Executive Office on Aging.

Your Committee finds that present statutory language specifies a physician declaration of a terminal condition as the only circumstance for implementation of the pre-hospital CCO-DNR protocols. There are several fundamental faults with mandating a diagnosis of terminal condition. It does not allow personal autonomy and self-determination. Physicians state it is difficult and they are not comfortable with diagnosing a person as being terminal, per se. This measure clarifies that it is the individual's decision and not a physician directive that determines the individual's disposition for resuscitation should the individual's heart and breathing stop.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Health and Human Services that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2777 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Judiciary.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Health and Human Services,

____________________________

DAVID MATSUURA, Chair