H.B. 302 Summary

• Authorizes advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) to order, assess, and certify home health care eligibility for Medicare beneficiaries under Title 42 U.S.C. section 1395f, provided they hold a valid, unrevoked license under Hawaii law.

• Permits APRNs licensed under chapter 457 to certify whether a person is totally disabled for purposes of Hawaii state income tax exemptions, alongside physicians and military medical officers.

• Allows APRNs to make capacity determinations for advance mental health care directives, either as supervising health care providers or as the second professional evaluator alongside physicians or licensed psychologists.

• Redefines "primary provider" and "supervising health care provider" in advance mental health care directive statutes to include APRNs alongside physicians, enabling patients to designate APRNs as primary mental health care decision-makers.

• Provides APRNs with the same legal protections against criminal prosecution, civil liability, and professional discipline as physicians when making good faith capacity determinations under advance mental health care directive laws.