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Dr. Fred Holschuh -Bill 163 January 21, 2005 Page 2 If we adopt these specific standards, the county may be liable for instances when they cannot be met because of unusual circumstances. In the future, we can revisit the idea of attempting to adhere to national and state standards for EMS, fire and police protection. We already have very high standards at the county level; my concern lies with declaring specific numbers in the general plan. OTHER CONCERNS: Other concerns that do not require changes at this time, but should be revisited diligently after Bill 163 is passed, are as follows: Page 160, "Fire and Emergencv Medical Services" should be corrected to reflect accurate information provided by Chief Daryl Oliveira, as shown in ramsayered format below: "There aze presently [44] 19 regular fire stations, [~i$] 23 volunteer fire stations, and 1 federal station[s] located throughout the island. The [ ] Pohakuloa fire stations-ere] is a federally operated [€seiliEies] facili [~A4E-gFervdes The regular fire stations [ ]provide 24-hour fire fighting and emergency medical services. The Waiakea and Kailua-Kona stations provide rescue services, the Kaumana [ssd~Se~h-I~ehale] station[s] provides hazazdous [waste] materials response and the South Kohala station provides air medical services." Relatedly, on page 173 ("Hospitals and Related Facilities"), correct information regarding county ambulance services should read as follows: "The County's Fire Department also provides ambulance service from the Captain Cook, Central, Honokaa, Kailua-Kona, Keaau, [end] Waimea, Kawailani, Pahoa. Naalehu, Keauhou, South Kohala, North Kohala, Waikoloa, Volcano and Ocean View Fire Stations." Page 162, "Policies" states in bullet form, "Maintain funding of two emergency medical helicopters." We cun•ently only have one "medical" chopper (chopper 2) and one used for search and rescue. Chief Oliveira suggests that this policy be stated as follows: "Maintain funding of [twe] an aoarooriate number and tvae of emergency [~edieel] helicopters, including aonronriate aeromedical capabilities." Page 162, "Policies" states that the county should "establish additional rehabilitation and counseling centers, including drug and behavioral treatment facilities in secure settings, when necessary." I support this overall objective, but I am wary of the word "establish" as this implies that the county will be assuming a traditional state Department of Health responsibility. I suggest that we amend this to read should "Encourage and facilitate the establishment of additional rehabilitation and counseling centers _ _