Gov. Josh Green signed 13 bills that look to expand access to health care statewide on Thursday.
"Access to health care shouldn't be a 'want to have,' but a 'need to have,' and we will continue to work toward finding those solutions that increase access, especially in our rural communities," Green said in a press release.
Among the laws are Act 110, which began as SB404. The bill updates the Hospital Sustainability Program to support a hospital's ability to provide services to Medicaid recipients.
Green also signed Act 111, formerly SB671, which excludes fentanyl testing strips from the definition of drug paraphernalia in the uniform Controlled Substance Act.
"As a state, we need to be compassionate and focus on harm reduction," Gov. Green said.
"It is important to legalize fentanyl test strips because fentanyl is 80 times more powerful than morphine, and it's being laced into other drugs and people are dying. If we can save lives, we should," he said.
Act 112 allows Hawaiʻi to enter into the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact, a measure already in effect in 37 other states.
The compact will allow physicians to practice more easily in Hawaiʻi while still maintaining nationally established standards for education and training.
Green believes the bill, formerly SB674, will assuage the shortage of health care professionals across the state.
