The following testimony was submitted by the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii for consideration by the Senate Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection on April 1, 2025.
_____________
April 1, 2025, 10:07 a.m.
Hawaii State Capitol
Conference Room 229 and Videoconference
To: Senate Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection
Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole, Chair
Sen. Carol Fukunaga, Vice Chair
From: Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
Ted Kefalas, Director of Strategic Campaigns
RE: COMMENTS IN SUPPORT OF HB1379 HD2 SD1 — RELATING TO HEALTH
Aloha Chair, Vice Chair and other members of the Committee,
The Grassroot Institute of Hawaii supports the intent of HB1379 HD2 SD1, which would ease the pathway to licensure for foreign medical graduates.
Hawaii is suffering from medical staffing shortages that affect both the quality and availability of care. Currently, Hawaii’s physician shortage stands at 768, up from 757 in 2023. The greatest shortage is in primary care, where Hawaii needs approximately 152 additional physicians.[1] The Hawaii Physician Workforce Assessment estimates that the state needs to net 100 new physicians per year in order to meet demand by 2032.[2] This bill could help address that shortage by creating a path to licensure for graduates of foreign medical schools.
We defer to the Hawaii Medical Board to determine the best way to balance public safety against effective reforms that will attract new doctors. However, the state should strive to avoid unnecessarily restricting the pool of potential new doctors through overly burdensome requirements.
We urge the Committee to pass HB1379.
Ted Kefalas
Director of Strategic Campaigns
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
_____________
[1] “Annual Report on Findings from the Hawai‘i Physician Workforce Assessment Project,” University of Hawai‘i, December 2024, p. 8.
[2] Ibid.
