Weekly Recap
Safe Haven for Newborns Passes First Committee
Wednesday, January 29, 2020
SB2532, (Relating to a Safe Haven Law) a bill that appropriates funds for the Department of Health to engage in a public awareness campaign on the safe haven law in the State has passed the Senate Committee on Protection and Health with amendments. Hawaii Family Forum submitted testimony in strong support because we worked very hard in 2007 to get the law passed.
The committee(s) on CPH recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in CPH were as follows:
6 Aye(s): Senator(s) Baker, S. Chang, Nishihara, Ruderman, L. Thielen, Fevella;
1 Excused: Senator(s) Wakai.
STATUS: The bill will now move on to the Senate Ways & Means Committee.
Assisted Suicide Back in the Legislature
Friday, January 31, 2020
The House Health Committee heard testimony from only about 25 people on HB 2451 (Relating to Health). Compassion and Choices had about 18 people there, including two professional lobbyists, and we saw about 7 who were there in opposition, including Hawaii Family Forum. Online testimony had a majority of support for the bill including the Hawaii Nursing Association, University of Hawaii School of Nursing, Hawaii Association of Professional Nurses, North Hawaii Hospice, and the Filipina Advocacy Network. Opposition testimony, although less in number, seemed more heavy from a very strong medical professional perspective. Many of these doctors and nurses are still active today and are very concerned about this bill.
The bill was passed with amendments and legislators expressed concern about the bill but the chair moved the bill forward to continue the discussion. The committee added a defective date to force the bill into conference committee.
The bill, if passed, will do three things: (1) allow advanced practice registered nurses to practice medical aid in dying instead of limiting this to physicians who are the only healthcare professionals who are able to determine a patient's prognoses, (2) reduce the mandatory waiting period between oral requests made by a terminally ill individual to fifteen days and (3) allow the attending provider to waive the waiting period for terminally ill individuals not expected to survive the mandatory waiting period.
We will send out the amendments once the new version is posted.
THE VOTES WERE AS FOLLOWS: The committees on HLT recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows:
5 Ayes: Representative(s) Mizuno, B. Kobayashi, Belatti, Nakamura, San Buenaventura; Ayes with reservations: none;
1 Noes: Representative(s) Ward;
2 Excused: Representative(s) Say, Tokioka.
STATUS: The bill will now move to a joint hearing of the House Committee on Consumer Protection and Health and the House Committee on Judiciary. Stay tuned!
Take Action! TIME TO RAISE YOUR VOICE!
Senate Committee on Consumer Protection & Health to hear bad assisted suicide bills!
The Senate CPH committee has schedule these two bills for hearing:
Tuesday, February 4, 2020 | 9:30 AM | Conference room 229 SB 3047 Allows an advance directive to be a valid written request for a prescription to be self-administered for the purpose of ending an adult's life. Includes advanced practice registered nurses under the definition of "attending provider". Allows an attending provider to waive the counseling referral requirement. Allows an attending provider to perform duties through telehealth, under certain conditions. Requires health insurance policies and contracts issued after December 31, 2020, to provide coverage for services related to ending a patient's life.
SB 2582 Authorizes advanced practice registered nurses, in addition to physicians, to practice medical aid in dying in accordance with their scope of practice and prescribing authority. Reduces the mandatory waiting period between oral requests from twenty days to fifteen days. Waives the mandatory waiting period for those terminally ill individuals not expected to survive the mandatory waiting period.
ACTION: We are asking you to call these Senators and ask them to vote NO on the two bills above. WE WILL BE SENDING OUT TALKING POINTS WITHIN THE NEXT FEW DAYS!!
SENATE COMMERCE, CONSUMER PROTECTION & HEALTH
- Sen. Rosalyn Baker, Chair 808-586-6070
- Sen. Stanley Chang, Vice Chair 808-586-8420
- Sen. Clarence Nishihara 808-586-6970
- Sen. Russell Ruderman 808-586-6890
- Sen. Laura Thielen 808-587-8388
- Sen. Glenn Wakai 808-586-8585
- Sen. Kurt Fevella 808-586-6360
If you live in the districts of any of the committee members, you can send a message to them by clicking this link. (Anyone can click the link, but only constituents can send a message through the system. You don't have to know if you are in their district, our system will let you know one way or the other!)
Upcoming Legislative Deadlines
FEB 6 - TRIPLE REFERRAL FILING (BILLS) - All bills referred to three or more committees must be filed so that they can be in their second-to-last committee by the following day. (Note: A referral to a joint committee counts as one committee referral.) This deadline allows ample time for successful bills to make their way to the last committee in their originating chamber by the First Lateral deadline.
FEB 14 - FIRST LATERAL (BILLS) - All bills referred to more than one committee (i.e., those with multiple referrals) must move to their final committee in the originating chamber by this day.
FEB 20 – 26 MANDATORY 5-DAY RECESS - Hawaii's Constitution mandates a 5-day recess between the 20th and 40th days of the regular session. Neither the House of Representatives nor the Senate convene or assemble formally in chamber on recess days. Committee hearings do take place.
From Around the Nation
Read President Trump's Remarks at the 2020 March for Life
January 24, 2020: Washington.
THE PRESIDENT: It is my profound honor to be the first President in history to attend the March for Life. (Applause.) We're here for a very simple reason: to defend the right of every child, born and unborn, to fulfill their God-given potential. [Read full remarks here.]