Bill Text: HI SB224 | 2011 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Lupus; Working Group; Department of Health
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 7-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2011-03-10 - (H) Referred to HLT, FIN, referral sheet 33 [SB224 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2011-SB224-Introduced.html
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THE SENATE |
S.B. NO. |
224 |
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TWENTY-SIXTH LEGISLATURE, 2011 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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A BILL FOR AN ACT
RELATING TO LUPUS.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION 1. (a) The legislature finds the following:
(1) Lupus is an urgent national health issue. Lupus results from an immune system that is unbalanced and can become destructive to any organ in the body. Lupus is unpredictable and potentially fatal, yet no satisfactory treatment exists. Its health consequences include disfiguring rashes, scarring, disabling arthritis, heart attacks, strokes, seizures, and organ failure;
(2) Misdiagnosis of lupus commonly occurs, resulting in needless suffering, denial by insurance companies for health or life insurance, and higher premiums for health insurance;
(3) National data indicate that more than 1,500,000 Americans suffer from lupus. According to Lupus Hawaii, over ten thousand people in Hawaii are affected by lupus;
(4) Lupus disproportionately affects Native Hawaiian, Pacific Island, Asian, African American, Hispanic, Latina, and Native American women, a health disparity that remains unexplained. Recent data show that ninety per cent of people with lupus are women, yet eighty per cent of women know little or nothing about the disease lupus;
(5) Although recommendations have been made, no new drugs have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration specifically for lupus in fifty years. While current treatments for the disease can be effective, they generate side effects that often prove worse than the disease itself; and
(6) Annually, lupus treatment costs the nation in excess of $31,400,000,000.
(b) The purpose of this Act is to create a statewide program to promote public and health professional education and awareness of lupus among public health and human services officials, physicians, nurses, and other health care providers and increase knowledge concerning the causes and consequences of lupus, the importance of early diagnosis and appropriate management, and effective treatment and management strategies.
SECTION 2. (a) The director of health shall establish a working group within the department of health to develop a comprehensive plan to improve education and awareness of lupus in the State.
(b) The plan shall focus on minority populations and at-risk communities to raise public awareness, educate consumers, and educate and train health professionals, human service providers, and other audiences. The director of health shall consider including the following activities in the plan:
(1) Distribution of medically-sound health information produced by national organizations that deal with lupus and government agencies, such as the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Arthritis Foundation, the American College of Rheumatology, the Lupus Foundation, and the Social Security Administration, through county health departments, physicians and other health professionals, hospitals, health plans and health maintenance organizations, women's health programs, and nonprofit and community-based organizations;
(2) Development of educational materials for health professionals that identify the latest scientific and medical information and clinical applications;
(3) Working to increase knowledge among physicians, nurses, and health and human services professionals about the importance of lupus diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation;
(4) Support of continuing medical education programs in the State by provision of up-to-date information;
(5) Provision of the latest information on clinical advances through statewide workshops and seminars to promote in-depth professional development for health care providers regarding the care and management of patients with lupus; and
(6) Development, maintenance, and dissemination of a directory of lupus-related services and lupus health care specialist providers who diagnose and treat lupus.
(c) The working group shall be composed of seven members to be chosen by the director. The members shall have lupus-related experience and shall include representatives from relevant state agencies, scientists with experience in lupus research, health and medical professionals with experience in lupus, representatives from non-profit women's and health organizations, and individuals with lupus. The members of the working group shall designate a chair from among its members and serve without compensation but shall be reimbursed for travel expenses necessary to carry out their duties.
(d) The director of health shall submit the comprehensive plan to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2012. The working group shall terminate on June 30, 2012.
SECTION 3. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
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INTRODUCED BY: |
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Report Title:
Lupus; Working Group; Department of Health
Description:
Requires the director of the health to establish a working group to develop a plan to increase education and awareness of lupus.
The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.
