STAND. COM. REP. NO. 549

                                 Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                   , 1999

                                 RE: H.B. No. 847
                                     H.D. 2




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

Sir:

     Your Committee on Education, to which was referred H.B. No.
847, H.D. 1, entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES FOR
     FELIX CLASS CHILDREN,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill is to require the Department of
Health (DOH) to develop:

     (1)  Service definitions for mental health services provided
          to members of the Felix v. Cayetano consent decree
          class that correspond to Medicaid definitions; and

     (2)  A fee schedule and billing codes comparable to those
          used for Medicaid and QUEST.

     DOH testified in support of the intent of the bill but
opposed the recommendations because they would have a detrimental
effect on the availability of services for Felix class youths.
Specifically, DOH testified that the volume of private providers
needed to meet the service requirements of Felix class youths
would not be available at the level of payments offered by QUEST
or Medicaid rates.

     Oral comments on the bill were received during the hearing
from the Department of Education, the Hawaii Early Intervention
Council, and a concerned parent.

 
 
 
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     Your Committee finds that all efforts should be made to
maximize federal reimbursements and decrease costs.  Your
Committee also finds that a major obstacle to maximizing federal
reimbursements is DOH's practice of paying more to private
providers of Felix services for mental health assessments than
Medicaid reimbursement rates.

     Your Committee has amended the bill by making technical,
nonsubstantive amendments for purposes of style and clarity.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Education that is attached to this report, your
Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No.
847, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it be
referred to the Committee on Finance in the form attached hereto
as H.B. No. 847, H.D. 2.

                                   Respectfully submitted on
                                   behalf of the members of the
                                   Committee on Education,



                                   ______________________________
                                   KEN ITO, Chair