Bill > HB854

This bill addresses critical mental health record-keeping challenges in Hawaii's correctional facilities by appropriating $500,000 for each year of the fiscal biennium (2025-2026 and 2026-2027) to the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to procure a new electronic health record system. The legislation stems from significant issues with the current eClinicalWorks software, which was inoperable from June 2022 to February 2023, causing gaps in accessing vital medical information for incarcerated individuals, including lab work, prescriptions, and medical referrals. The bill requires the department to submit a comprehensive report to the legislature by November 1, 2025, detailing progress on procurement, software inadequacies, efforts to share electronic information with other state health agencies, potential third-party software vendors, and recommendations for legislative assistance in obtaining a new electronic record-keeping system. The bill aims to improve healthcare access and record management for incarcerated individuals by addressing technological gaps that have hindered proper medical documentation and information sharing, with the new provisions set to take effect on July 1, 2025.

Military Affairs and Security

https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session/measure_indiv.aspx?billtype=HB&billnumber=854&year=2026