STAND. COM. REP. NO. 148

                                 Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                   , 1999

                                 RE: H.B. No. 644
                                     H.D. 1




Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say
Speaker, House of Representatives
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 1999
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committees on Human Services and Housing and Health, to
which was referred H.B. No. 644 entitled:

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO ADULT RESIDENTIAL CARE
     HOMES,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to maximize the utilization of
Type I adult residential care homes by imposing a moratorium on
the licensing of these homes.

     Your Committees received testimony in favor of this measure
from the Department of Health (intent only) and United Group of
Home Operators.  Informational testimony was received from the
Department of Human Services.

     In particular, this bill requires the Department of Health
to determine the number of existing Type I adult residential care
homes in the State that have three or fewer residents as of June
30, 1999, identify each specific facility as underutilized, and
cease to issue licenses to operate new Type I homes until the
percentage of these underutilized homes falls below ten per cent
of the total amount of Type I homes on each island.  The bill
allows the department to issue new licenses on a case-by-case
basis on the neighbor islands if there is a demonstrable demand
for those facilities.  In addition, this bill requires the

 
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Department of Human Services to strongly encourage public-pay
clients to use underutilized Type I homes.

     While the legislature agrees that adult residential care
homes play an important role in addressing the long-term care
needs of Hawaii's aging population, prohibiting the Department of
Health from issuing new licenses to these facilities may deter
the development of a community-based health care industry and may
also discriminate against new enterprises in this area.
Moreover, the requirement that the Department of Human Services
encourage clients to accept placement in underutilized homes may
not be possible to carry out, given the fact that the department
must consider a number of factors in recommending placements and
cannot consider underutilization above the needs and preferences
of the client.  Finally, as reported by the Department of Health,
of the four hundred and fifty licensed adult residential care
homes on Oahu, less than thirty-one, or seven per cent, have more
than two vacancies.

     Upon further review, your Committees have amended this bill
by replacing the contents of section 2 of the bill, and amending
the purpose provisions in section 1 of the bill, to delete the
moratorium on new licensing and instead require the Departments
of Human Services and Health to do the following:

     (1)  Determine the highest and best use of existing licensed
          Type I adult residential care homes;

     (2)  Determine and establish the need for services provided
          by Type I adult residential care homes by geographic
          regions in the State by county;

     (3)  Develop rating scales with incentive points for Type I
          adult residential care homes with special features,
          including space and location, for example, convenience
          to shopping and recreation and amenities in the home;

     (4)  Develop consumer brochures or pamphlets on selecting an
          appropriate Type I adult residential care home for
          prospective residents and families; and

     (5)  Report findings and recommendations, including any
          proposed implementing legislation, to the legislature
          no later than twenty days before the convening of the
          regular session of 2001.


 
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     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committees on Human Services and Housing and Health that is
attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the
intent and purpose of H.B. No. 644, as amended herein, and
recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto
as H.B. No. 644, H.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on
Consumer Protection and Commerce.

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



______________________________     ______________________________
ALEXANDER C. SANTIAGO, Chair       DENNIS A. ARAKAKI 

 
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