Kokua Mau

Legislative agenda for the 2024 session

June 26, 2024 markus Good to know, Hospice, Interesting Events or News 0

Or: How five words make a big difference

The governor signed the bill on June 27, 2024!

Now in effect as Act 98, the SB2529 SD1 HD1 CD1 has been signed by Gov. Green.

No changes to POLST forms is needed. Please update your operating procedures. Contact Jeannette with any questions.

Thank you to everybody who worked on it with us and submitted testimony for SB2529.

The process to get there:

Thank you to everybody who submitted testimony for the past hearings:

  • SB2529 SD1 HD1 CD1 has been passed by the Legislature and went on the way to the Governor for his signature.
  • SB2529 SD1, was heard by the the House Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce (CPC) and House Committee on Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs on Thursday March 21, 2024. It passed as is.
  • SB2529 SD1 was heard and passed as is by the the House Committee on Health & Homelessness (HLT) on March 15.
  • SB2529 SD1 was heard and passed “as is” by the Committee on Judiciary (JDC) on Feb 16.
  • SB2529 was heard by the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services Jan 31. It passed!

BACKGROUND

We have heard from our Hawaiʻi hospices that an administrative adjustment is needed in our current POLST law. We have created and passed a bill in the 2024 Legislative session to address the issue. 

This will help to improve access to POLST, especially for some of the most vulnerable patients in hospice care. It will bring us in line with other states and will not decrease the integrity or importance of POLST. Nor will it affect the current wording of our Hawaiʻi POLST Form.

A team from Kōkua Mau has been working on this with Senator Moriwakiʻs office since December 2023. Please visit our webpage for step-by-step details and how you can submit testimony to support this administrative change to make an updated POLST available for all in hospice care.

  • Sen. Sharon Moriwaki has introduced a bill in the Senate SB2529. Track the bill here (You can submit testimony using the yellow button on that page). PDF of SB2529. PDF of SB2529 SD1