Bill Text: HI SCR104 | 2019 | Regular Session | Amended


Bill Title: Requesting The Auditor To Assess The Social And Financial Effects Of Mandating Health Care Coverage Of Cannabidiol Oil Derived From Industrial Hemp.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2019-04-05 - Referred to CPC, FIN, referral sheet 50 [SCR104 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2019-SCR104-Amended.html

THE SENATE

S.C.R. NO.

104

THIRTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2019

S.D. 1

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

SENATE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

 

REQUESTING THE AUDITOR TO ASSESS THE SOCIAL AND FINANCIAL EFFECTS OF MANDATING HEALTH CARE COVERAGE OF CANNABIDIOL OIL DERIVED FROM INDUSTRIAL HEMP.

 

 


     WHEREAS, industrial hemp is defined under the State's Industrial Hemp Pilot Program as the cultivated plant Cannabis sativa L. and any part of that plant, whether growing or not, with a delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of not more than 0.3 percent on a dry weight basis or a tetrahydrocannabinol concentration allowed by federal law, whichever is greater; and

 

     WHEREAS, industrial hemp-derived products have been removed from Schedule I of the federal Controlled Substances Act under certain circumstances; and

 

     WHEREAS, industrial hemp contains cannabidiol, a therapeutic non-psychoactive chemical compound, and low levels of tetrahydrocannabinol, a psychoactive chemical compound that is found in high levels in other types of cannabis plants, that are classified as marijuana; and

 

     WHEREAS, the medicinal benefits of cannabidiol have been recently recognized by the United States Food and Drug Administration, which, on June 25, 2018, approved Epidiolex (cannabidiol), an oral solution for the treatment of seizures associated with severe forms of epilepsy, specifically, Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome, in patients two years of age and older; and

 

     WHEREAS, both cannabidiol and tetrahydrocannabinol have similar medicinal benefits, such as relieving pain, reducing nausea, easing migraines, and reducing inflammation; however, cannabidiol, unlike tetrahydrocannabinol, does not produce a high, does not have psychoactive side effects, does not increase appetite, but does decrease seizures; and

 

     WHEREAS, H.B. No. 20, introduced during the Regular Session of 2019, requires health insurers and similar entities that provide coverage for health care to provide drug coverage for cannabidiol oil that is derived from industrial hemp; and

 

     WHEREAS, pursuant to section 23-51, Hawaii Revised Statutes, before any legislative measure that mandates health insurance coverage for specific health services, specific diseases, or certain providers of health care services as part of individual or group health insurance policies, can be considered, Concurrent Resolutions shall be passed that designate a specific legislative bill for the Auditor to review and prepare a report for submission to the Legislature that assesses both the social and financial effects of the proposed mandated coverage under that legislative bill; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirtieth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2019, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Auditor is requested to conduct an assessment, pursuant to sections 25-51 and 23-52, Hawaii Revised Statutes, of the social and financial effects of mandating health care coverage of cannabidiol oil that is derived from industrial hemp, as provided in H.B. No. 20, introduced during the Regular Session of 2019; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Auditor is requested to submit a report of its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2020; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Auditor and Insurance Commissioner.

Report Title: 

Auditor; Assessment; Cannabidiol; Insurance Coverage:

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