HB 838 Summary

• Establishes a Long-Term Care Commission within the University of Hawaii College of Social Sciences' Social Science Research Institute to develop reforms and financing strategies for Hawaii's long-term care system.

• Commission consists of 15 voting members (5 appointed by the governor, 5 by the senate president, 5 by the house speaker) plus 5 nonvoting ex officio state directors, with members required to have backgrounds in business, healthcare, finance, social services, or long-term care advocacy.

• Commission must review and update long-term care policy goals, assess existing capacity and programs, develop a five-year comprehensive long-term care plan with annual benchmarks, and explore public and private financing options for long-term care services.

• Commission shall submit an interim report to the legislature by 20 days before the 2025 regular session and a final report by 20 days before the 2028 regular session, with the commission terminating at the end of the 2028 legislative session.

• Appropriates unspecified general revenues for fiscal years 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 to fund commission operations and authorized studies, including actuarial analyses and third-party contracts exempt from competitive bidding requirements.