HI HCR98

Requests the Department of Health to convene a science advisory group of experts to evaluate testing capabilities for emerging infectious diseases such as dengue, Zika, chikungunya, and West Nile viruses.

Tasks the advisory group with evaluating the State Laboratories Division's current testing policies, procedures, and capacity to respond to health threats, and recommending state-of-the-art testing approaches.

Directs the advisory group to make recommendations for establishing a Hawaii laboratory to rapidly respond to infectious diseases in the State and Pacific region, and to estimate costs of developing testing facilities on neighbor islands.

Requires the advisory group to include experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institutes of Health, and the John A. Burns School of Medicine at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

Mandates the science advisory group submit findings and recommendations to the Legislature no later than twenty days before the 2017 Regular Session, with the group ceasing to exist on December 31, 2016.