STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1463

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    H.B. No. 467

       H.D. 1

       S.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Donna Mercado Kim

President of the Senate

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2015

State of Hawaii

 

Madam:

 

     Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred H.B. No. 467, H.D. 1, entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HEALTH,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to improve detection of critical, life-threatening congenital heart defects in newborns in the State.

 

     Specifically, the measure requires birthing facilities to:

 

     (1)  Perform a pulse oximetry test or other medically accepted screening on newborns to screen for critical congenital heart defects; and

 

     (2)  Report certain critical congenital heart defect screening data to the Department of Health.

 

     Your Committee received written comments in support of this measure from the Department of Health, the American Heart Association, Kapiolani Medical Center, March of Dimes, and one individual.

 

     Your Committee finds that congenital heart defects are structural abnormalities of the heart that are present at birth and are the number one killer of infants with birth defects.  Your Committee further finds that pulse oximetry is effective at detecting critical, life-threatening congenital heart defects, which otherwise go undetected by current screening methods.  Your Committee believes that many newborn lives can potentially be saved by requiring birthing facilities to perform this simple, non-invasive newborn screening in conjunction with current congenital heart disease screening methods.

 

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

 

     (1)  Changing the effective date to July 1, 2015; and

 

     (2)  Making technical nonsubstantive changes for purposes of clarity and style.

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 467, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 467, H.D. 1, S.D. 1.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Ways and Means,

 

 

 

________________________________

JILL N. TOKUDA, Chair