Senate Standing Committee on Health and Human Services

Good afternoon. Calling the 1PM health human services hearing. We are in Room 225. This meeting is being streamed live on YouTube. In the unlikely event that we must abruptly end this hearing due to technical difficulties, the committee will reconvene to discuss any outstanding business at 1PM, Friday, April 10, in Room 225.

And a public notice will be posted on the legislator's website. To facilitate this hearing in a timely manner, we will be enforcing a one minute limit on testimony, except for the nominee. I will be reading a list of individuals who submitted written testimony for each measure. We apologize for the closed captioning does not accurately transcribe the names. If you're interested in reviewing the written testimony, please go to the legislator's website.

You'll find a link on the status for the measure. Appreciate your understanding and remind you that committee does have your testimony, that we review them. So, I encourage you to use your time to either add additional comments or stand on written testimony. I would, we also have Senator Kanuha present.

I would like to note that we have, following the GM calendar form, the 01:00, we will be following it with the decision making on SCR 9388 and the deferred decision making on the prior GMs on Monday.

And because we only have the ASL interpreter here for fifteen minutes, we are gonna recess wherever we are as soon as we have quorum after the GM 05:31. Okay. So first up, GM 05:31, Charlotte Townsend for DCAB, disability and communications access board. Are you present, Charlotte Townsend?

Yes. I am on video, audio.

Okay. Please proceed. Let us know why it is you want to be on DCAB.

Well, I have over thirty years experience with DCAB as a prior board member, a staff. And so I'm very committed to the mission and I can, even though retired, I have time and I felt that I could still give more time. I appreciate your reconsideration.

Thank you very much for, for willing to volunteer. And I noticed that you have a soldier of justice award presented for your disability advocacy, and it looks like you are very qualified to continue on the work for Disability Communications Access Board. In testifying on behalf of Charlotte Townsend, we have Christine Pagano of DECAB. Aloha.

Aloha, chair, Kelby, and also community members. My name is Christine Pagano. I'm the acting executive director for the disability and communication access board. DeKalb fully supports the nomination of Charlotte Townsend

for

expertise and extensive knowledge and advocacy span over fifty years. Thank you. During which she has consistently championed equal access and the respectful treatment of all individuals. As a current board chair, she current she she needs continues to provide strong leadership and clear direction. Charlotte inspires, empowers many people with disabilities to develop their leadership skills and become advocates within their communities.

We DCAB respectively ask for your support and for her nomination. Thank you.

Thank you. Anybody else wishing to testify on GM five thirty one? Come on up.

Chairs, committee members, Dean Sh Bartolos.

I'd like to testify, as a private citizen. Charlotte Townsend, when I started working at the Arc in Hawaii in the nineteen eighty's, was one of my first educators' mentors, and she's been, a true support to me ever since then, and I'm just in strong support, and I just wanted to give my, strong support for Charlotte. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Anybody else wishing to testify on g m five thirty one? Members, any questions? Charlotte, thank you so much for being willing to re up and continuing to volunteer. I know that it can be trying sometimes, but your ability and and I admire your ability to continue to be willing to volunteer in the process.

Since we have CORA, are we ready to proceed with decision making for GM five thirty one? Okay. So we are gonna have acting vice chair Kanuha. Chair's recommendation for GM 05:31 is to advise and consent. Any comments, questions, concerns?

Seeing none, vice chair acting vice chair for the vote. Chair votes aye.

Chair votes aye. Vice chair McKelvey is excused. I vote aye. Senator Keohokalole is excused. Senator Fevella?

Aye. Recommendations adopted, madam chair.

Okay. Thank you very much. K. With that, I'm gonna recess the 01:00 GM calendar so we can do decision making on the other ones that we have deferred on since we have quorum now. And first up would be the SCR 93 SR 88, resolution requesting the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands and Statewide Office on Homelessness and Housing Solutions to develop a coordinated support and stabilization pathway for native Hawaiian beneficiaries experiencing homelessness or extremely low income.

The Committee on Hawaiian Affairs had passed this resolution as is, and I will agree with that recommendation. So acting vice chair on SCR 93 SR 88, chair's recommendation is to pass as is. Chair votes aye.

Pass unamended. Chair votes aye. Senator McKelvey is excused. I vote aye. Senator Keohokalole is excused.

Aye.

Chair, your recommendations on SCR 93 and SR 88 passes.

Senator Fevella?

Okay. Thank you very much. And with that, we are going to the 01/05 calendar for, the deferred decision making on GM 540. Robert Schroeder for the sub for the Health Planning Council Tri-Isle County sub area, for term to expire 06/30/2029. Chair's recommendation is to advise and consent.

Any comments, questions, concerns? Seeing none, vice chair for the vote on GM 540.

On GM 540, recommendation is to advise and consent, noting only now the excused absence of Senator McKelvey. Any other any is there any reservations? Any no votes? Chair, your recommendation is adopted.

So for GM five sixty two, chair's recommendation for Richard Collins for the juvenile justice state advocacy advisory council for turn to expire 06/30/2029. Chair's recommendation is to advise and consent any comments, questions, concerns. Seeing none, vice chair for the vote.

Noting vice chair McKelvey as excused. Is there any reservations? Any no votes? Recommendation is adopted.

Thank you very much. For GM 673, Johnson Kobayashi for the commission on fatherhood for Hawaii island. Term to expire 06/30/2029. Chair's recommendation is to advise and consent. Any comments, questions, concerns?

Seeing none, vice chair for the vote.

We have vice chair McKelvey excused. Is there any reservations? Any no votes? Recommendation is adopted.

For GM 07/22, Robert Schroeder again, stepping up twice. For statewide health coordinating council for term to expire 06/30/2030. Chair's recommendation is to advise and consent. Any comments, questions, concerns? Seeing none, vice chair for the vote.

Noting vice chair McKelvey as excused. Are there any reservations? Any no votes? Recommendations adopted.

For GM 781, Steven Lung for Pavea, policy advisory board for elder affairs. Chair's recommendation is to advise and consent for for a term to expire 06/30/2029. Any comments, questions, concerns? Seeing none, vice chair for the vote.

Vice chair McKelvey is excused. Are there any reservations? Any no votes? Recommendation is adopted.

For GM 543, Ella Sirovski, Health Planning Council, Windward Oahu sub area for term to expire 06/30/2029. Chair's recommendation is to advise and consent. Any comments, questions, concerns? Seeing none, vice chair for the vote.

Vice chair McKelvey, excuse. Are there any reservations? Any no votes? Recommendations adopted.

For GM660, Sarah Kamaka Vivo Ole for Center for Nursing Advisory Board for term to expire 06/30/2027. Chair's recommendation is to advise and consent. Any comments, questions, concerns? Seeing none, vice chair for the vote.

Vice chair McKelvey excused. Any reservations? Any no votes? Recommendations adopted.

For GM 708, Nicole Hokuana, mental health and substance abuse, Maui service advice area board for term to expire 06/30/2030. Chair's recommendation is to advise and consent. Any comments, questions, concerns? Seeing none, vice chair for the vote.

Vice chair McKelvey, excused. Any recom, any reservations? Any no holds? Recommendations adopted.

So the 01:05 calendar is now adjourned, and we are reconvening for the continuation of the 01:00 calendar. Next up is GM 532, Max Mathias junior for the emergency medical service advisory committee for term to expire 06/30/2029. Is Max Mathias present? Okay. Max, please proceed.

Let us know why you want to be in emergency medical service advisory committee.

Thank you for asking, ma'am. I have been part of the fire and emergency services for the past thirty one, going on thirty two years. And I currently sit on various advisory boards like for Fire Science program. I feel that I can still contribute to the, overall success of not only the educational program, but have the experience and the networking that I believe will be, very beneficial, by sitting on MSAC.

Okay. Thank you very much. Speaking on behalf of GM 532's Department of Health in support. Come on up.

Aloha, chair, committee members. My name is, Andrew Yonemura, Department of Health EMS. We stand by our testimony in support of, chief Matias' nomination. Unfortunately, our chief is not able to make it today. However, he believes a chief is will be a great addition to JMSAC and, welcomes him back for the second term.

Thank you for the opportunity to testify.

K. Thank you very much. Next, we have Marilyn Matsunaga, for Emergency Medical Services and also for Emergency Medical Services Advisory Committee in support of GM 532. Marilyn, are you present? Anybody else wishing to speak on GM 532?

Members, any questions? Okay. So, chief, thank you very much for being willing to step up for a second term. It seems to me with your thirty years of experience, you're highly qualified to give us your advice and for regarding policy for EMS. We're not gonna do decision making until the very end of the calendar, but thank you very much.

Thank you, ma'am, for the opportunity and the consideration.

Okay. Thank you so much. Okay. Next up is GM553, Ann Chipchase, State Council on Developmental Disabilities for term to expire June 30, 29. Come on up, Anne.

Yes, ma'am.

K. Please identify yourself and let us know why you want to be in the disability council.

I am Anne Chip Chase, and I am currently a member of the council. I work for Hawaii Disability Rights Center as an advocate, and the two just go naturally together. I have learned so much from both the work cross, and that is essentially why I wanna continue. Thank you.

Okay. Thank you very much. I see Daintry here for disability council, in support of your nomination.

Yes. Daintry Bartoldus, Executive Director for the Hawaii State Council on Developmental Disabilities. Yes. This is a reappointment for Anne. It is a federal mandated seat to have, PNA, which is our Hawaii Disabilities Rights Center, on our council.

But beyond that, we really appreciate them being there. They really bring in a perspective from the community where there are gaps in services. That's pretty much all they get is complaints. And so it gives us an opportunity to look at systems change and how to fill those gaps. And so her contribution is very important to our council.

Thank you very much for this opportunity to testify.

Thank you very much. Next, we also have Hawaii Disability Rights Center, Louis Erteschik in support. Louis, are you present on Zoom?

Yes. Thank you very much, Senator. I'm trying to turn my video on. Oh, there we go. Yes.

We're also in strong support, and I thank Daintry for her kind words about Anne, and Anne has been an advocate in our office for several years now and has done an excellent job. And yes, as the PNA, we are required to have a member on the DD council, but it does go beyond that. Anne's done a really good job keeping me informed about what the council is doing. I keep her informed, if I have things to tell the council.

So she's been an excellent member of the council, and she has fostered Modencia and I have known each other for a long time and always had a great working relationship.

But Anne has fostered a lot of things where she'll come to me and say, hey, "This came up at the at the DD Council, and, we should work on it." And so she's been a great liaison. So we definitely support the reappointment.

Thank you very much. Anybody else wishing to testify on GM 553? Members, any questions? So Anne Chipchase, similarly, thank you so much for willing to step up and willing to volunteer. I know it gets trying to corral all of these different issues, but we need people like you to help us shape policy.

K. So thank you. Again, please wait till the end of the calendar until for decision making. Next up, we have GM 568, Emily Wilkinson, state rehabilitation council. Emily, are you present?

Oh, please proceed. Identify yourself and let us know why it is you wanna be in the rehabilitation council.

So my name is Emily Puanani Wilkinson. I would like to be on the the council because I have actually been a client of DVR. So I tend to know the program. And I'm also working at the Hawaii Disability Rights Center as the advocate on the Social Security Administration work incentive program. So I'm very job focused for our disabled community.

I've also been serving the disabled community for seventeen years now at the Hawaii disability rights center. So, yes, I would love your support.

Thank you so much. Next, we have Ryan Amai, director, Department of Human Services in support. Director, okay, for please proceed. Identify yourself.

Hello everybody. Thank you.

You need to speak up into your mic.

Oh, can you hear me now?

Yes.

Okay. I'm sorry. Lea Dias here. I'm the division of vocational rehabilitation administrator here on behalf of director Lamane. We stand in strong support on on our written testimony.

Emily has been a fantastic addition to our state rehabilitation council to bring so many years of experience and such passion to the, to the work and, yeah. Strongly, strongly support.

Thank you very much. Next, we have Louis Erteschik, Hawaii disability rights center in support. Louis, are you still present on zoom?

I am, Senator. Thank you. And we're also equally proud of Emily Wilkinson, who's been a great advocate at our office. And she is, as she indicated in her testimony, she has a lot of lived experience that is really relevant to what the SRC does, because she was a client of DVR. She has tremendous empathy.

She does a lot of work for us on benefits counseling and things like that. And so, she's a great success story in my view, you know, having started out as a person with a disability and as a client, and and here she is working for us full time giving back and helping people. And so she's I mean, she's excellent. And, I, and I think that she'd be a terrific member of the council. So thank you.

Thank you very much. Next, we have Rayna Lynn Tirado in support. Rayna Lynn, are you present? Okay. Members, any questions on GM 568?

Anybody else wishing to testify on GM 568? So Emily, again, the decision making is not until the end of the calendar, but I really want to thank you, on behalf of the state legislature for stepping up. And as what Louis Erteschik can prior test and testifies have said, we need people with lived experience to help us with policy, especially those who have gone through it before, yeah? So thank you very much. Okay, next up.

Moving on. Next up is GM 734, Gary Hutchinson, board of certification of operating personnel in wastewater treatment for term to expire 06/30/2029. Gary Hutchinson. Okay. Please, identify yourself and let us know why it is you're willing to serve in the board.

Good afternoon, committee, and thank you for considering my nomination. I'm Gary Hutchinson. I'd like to be reappointed to the board because there's a few things that I would like to continue doing. One of those is working with DOH to update some of the regulations that haven't really been updated since the nineteen seventies. Yeah.

There's a lot to do there, and I'd love to help out. Thirty years experience in the industry and work in water too. So there's some interrelations there. And the more we go forward, the more we interrelate water and wastewater because in a lot of ways, they're one and the same. So, again, thank you for considering my nomination.

Okay. Thank you very much. Next, we have Department of Health in support.

Good afternoon, chair, members of the committee. I'm John Nagato, Department of Health Wastewater Branch. The department stands on its, written testimony in support of Gary.

Okay. Thank you very much. Anybody else wishing to testify on GM seven thirty four? Members, any questions? So again, we're gonna have to wait until the end of the calendar for decision making, but I really want to also thank you for being willing to step up as my co Senator from Kau.

And I'm also from the Big Island. Wastewater is a serious issue on our island, so we need policy makers like yourself who have gone through this before to help us update and formulate plans. So thank you for being willing to step up. Okay. Next up, we have, GM 780, Chris Kojima, Radiologic Technology Board for term to expire 06/30/2030.

Okay. Kryss Kojima, are you present?

Yes.

Okay. Please identify yourself and let us know why you want to be on the board.

Oh, hi. I'm Kryss Kojima.

I'm a radiologist. I've been in radiology at Straub for about twenty twenty something years, and I'm the I've been the chief for the last, I don't know, fifteen years or so. And then I'd like to serve on the board just to support the, radiology technologists. Some of them are already on the board from from from my hospital, and they asked me if they if I could be one of their, physician members.

Okay. Thank you very much. On behalf of GM 780, we have Department of Health, Environmental Health Administration in support.

Chair, Chair Sen Buenaventura, committee members, thank you for deliberating over Kryss doctor Kojima's appointment. My name is Christopher Page. I'm with the indoor and indoor and radiological health branch radiation section. I'm here to stand on, the department's testimony in support of doctor Kojima. We are available for any questions if you have them.

K. Thank you very much. Next, we have Reiko Nakamoto with Straubinioff Medical Center, in support. And anybody else wishing to testify on GM 780? Members, any questions?

Okay. Again, you're gonna have to wait till the end of the calendar for decision making, Doctor Kojima, but thank you for being willing to step up. We know that your time, like everybody else's time, is super valuable, but we need policy makers like yourself to help us navigate what we need to do in the legislature. So with that, with that, members, are we ready for decision making?

So, acting vice chair Kanuha for GM 530 I mean, for GM 532, Max Matias Junior for term to expire 06/30/2029. This is the Emergency Medical Service Advisory Committee. Chair's recommendation is to advise and consent. Any comments, questions, concerns? Seeing none, vice chair for the vote.

Four members present. Senator McKelvey excused. Are there any reservations? Any no votes? Recommendations adopted.

For GM 553 and Chip Chase, State Council on Developmental Disabilities for term to expire 06/30/2029. Chair's recommendation is to advise and consent. Any comments, questions, concerns? Seeing none, vice chair for the vote.

Four members present. Are there any reservations? Any no votes? Recommendation's adopted.

Thank you very much. GM 568. Emily Wilkinson for State Rehabilitation Council for turn to expire. 06/30/2028. Chair's recommendation is to advise and consent.

Any comments, questions, concerns? Seeing none, vice chair for the vote.

Four members present, are there any reservations? Any no votes? Recommendation is adopted.

For GM 734, Gary Hutchinson, board of certification of operating personnel and wastewater treatment plants. Chair's recommend for term fixed by 06/30/2029. Chair's recommendation is to advise and consent. Any comments, questions, concerns? Seeing none, vice chair for the vote.

Four members present. Any reservations? Any no votes? Recommendation is adopted.

For GM 780, Radiologic Technology Board, Doctor. Chris Kojima for term to expire 06/30/2030. Chair's recommendation is to advise and consent. Any comments, questions, concerns? Seeing none, vice chair would oppose.

Four members present, any reservations? Any no votes? Recommendation's adopted.

And with that, we are adjourned. Thank you, commit.