HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0093.001 2024-2026Hon -Oulu. HI
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Jan. 21, 2025, 2 p.m.
Hawai'i County Building
To: Hawaii County Council, Policy Committee on Planning, Land Use, and Economic Development
Ashley Kierkiewicz, Chair
Michelle Galimba, Vice -Chair
From: Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
Malia Hill, Policy Director
RE: Bill 22 — RELATING TO HOSPITALS, SANITARIUMS, OLD AGE, CONVALSECENT, NURSING AND REST HOMES
Aloha Chair Kierkiewicz, Vice -Chair Galimba and other members of the Committee,
The Grassroot Institute of Hawaii supports Bill 22 which would allow hospitals, sanitariums, old age,
convalescent, nursing and rest homes to be built by -right in industrial -commercial mixed zoning districts.
These facilities are considered a by -right use in the general, village and Downtown Hilo commercial zones;
however, they are not permitted in any of the county's industrial zones.
Expanding the areas in which these healthcare facilities could be built would help potential healthcare
providers offer much -needed services to island residents. This is not only a matter of convenience, but also of
healthcare affordability and access. Enacting this bill could help address the state's healthcare shortages.
A 2023 report from the Hawaii Physician Workforce Assessment Project estimated that Hawaii County has an
unmet need for 206 full-time equivalent physicians.' In addition, a 2022 report by the Healthcare Association
of Hawaii estimated that the county is shy about 500 nurses and other non -physician staff of the number
required to meet its healthcare needs.2
Expanding zoning options for healthcare might not immediately increase the number of available doctors and
nurses in the county, but it would remove unnecessary barriers to new facilities.
1 "Annual Report on Findings from the Hawaii Phician Workforce Assessment Project" University of Hawaii, December 2023, p. 5.
2 "Hawai'i Heal hear Workforce Initijy ?Q22 Re or ," Healthcare Association of Hawaii, p. 7.
1050 Bishop St. #508 Honolulu, HI 96813 808-864-1776 info@grassrootinstitute.orgLA F1
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Making it easier to open a new healthcare facility, in turn, would bring more doctors, specialists and healthcare
professionals to Hawai'i County, thereby improving healthcare access and outcomes for its residents.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify.
Malia Hill
Policy Director
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
1050 Bishop St. #508 Honolulu, HI 96813 808-864-1776 ' info@grassrootinstitute.org