Dear Neighbor, After a year-long hiatus, District 24 News is back! I hope you find this news-letter informative and useful. If you would like to comment on a particular story or have a specific question or concern as the State Legislature progresses through the 2014 Regular Session, please contact my office at:

Representative Della Au Belatti State Capitol, Room 331 Honolulu, HI 96813

I can also be reached at (808) 586-9425 or at repbelat-ti@capitol.hawaii.gov. As part of our social media outreach ef-forts, you can find updates about legislative and community events from my office at www.facebook.com/RepDellaBelatti

The 2014 Regular Session is steadily progressing. Both House and Senate are moving towards First Crossover, when bills that have been heard and survived the hearing process in their originating houses now move over to the opposite chamber. As chairper-son of the House Committee on Health, I have been working on bills related to a variety of issues, including implementation of the Affordable Care Act, oversight of the Hawaii Health Connector, and improvements to access to quality medical and dental health services in our communities. To access information on any of these or other measures before the Legislature or to view scheduled hearings at the Legislature, please visit www.capitol.hawaii.gov.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me.

With aloha,

Della Au Belatti State Representative, District 24

MAKIKI, TANTALUS, PAPAKLEA, MCCULLY, PWAA, MNOA FEBRUARY 2014

District 24 News

The Shortlist SPECIAL FREE TAX HELP (BY APPOINTMENT ONLY) Tuesdays & Thursdays 4:30-7:30 PM Saturdays 10:00 AM-2:00 PM Starts: Feb. 4 - Ends: March 29, 2014 Goodwill Industries (1072 Young Street) Call (808) 690-9801 Free statewide tax preparation sites. Thanks to certified volunteers working at tax assistance sites across the State, you can have your federal and state tax re-turns prepared for free. Call the above number or visit the HACBED website at www.hawaiitaxhelp.org for more infor-mation and additional sites. ART AT THE CAPITOL Friday, April 4, 2014; 5:00-7:00 PM Hawaii State Capitol 415 South Beretania Street Participate in this opportunity to peruse the Hawaii State Capitol's Art in Public Places collection-which consists of nearly 1000 pieces of artwork by local artists displayed in offices throughout the Capi-tol-meet the artists, enjoy the Capitol, and be sure to stop by Room 331 to visit with Representative Belatti and her 2014 staff. 6th ANNUAL MAKIKI EASTER EGG HUNT & COMMUNITY FOOD DRIVE Saturday, April 12, 2014; 9:00-11:00 AM Makiki District Park 1527 Keeaumoku Street Peter Cottontail will be hopping into Makiki for the annual Makiki Easter Egg Hunt and Community Food Drive spon-sored by the Friends of the Makiki Com-munity Library. Bring your canned food donations for the Parish of St. Clements Food Pantry and join us for fun arts & crafts, an Easter egg hunt, and even get a picture with the Easter Bunny.

If you have questions about the listed district events, please contact Representa-

tive Belatti at (808) 586-9425 or at repbelatti@capitol.hawaii.gov.

State Capitol (January 15, 2014): Major General Darryll D.M.

Wong with Representative Belatti on Opening Day 2014.

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Kapiolani Medical Center Building for the Future Groundbreaking for new NICU/PICU facility at KMC campus

On January 21, 2014, Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Chil-dren (KMC) hosted a community meet-ing to educate the general public and answer questions about the ongoing construction and future of the hospital.

KMC is the only full service specialty care facility for women and children in Hawaii, consisting of the state's only pediatric intensive care unit and 24-hour pediatric emergency room and offering the highest level of critical care for children in the Hawai i.

Despite its recognition as a leader in healthcare in Hawaii and the nation, KMC leaders have identified areas for improvement, including facility im-provements. Since 2011, KMC has engaged in an extensive modernization and construction project beginning with the building of its new parking structure.

KMC recently broke ground for the new NICU/PICU building, a 200,000 square foot building with 70 NICU private rooms, 14 PICU private rooms, 12 medical surgical private rooms, an auditorium, and numerous conference/class rooms for educational purposes. Anticipating 25 months of construc-tion, KMC estimates a March 2016 completion date for the new NICU/PICU building.

Numerous community concerns were raised at the January 21st meeting in-cluding: traffic; potential road closures; construction dust and debris; operation and placement of construction equip-ment during construction; hours of construction; and excessive noise.

Understanding that Punahou Street is a main commuter route and access point for ongoing hospital operations during the construction phase, KMCs con-struction team acknowledged the bur-den placed on community members and reassured the public that concerns from both the community and the hos-pital were taken into consideration when requesting necessary road and traffic modifications.

In response to construction dust and debris concerns, KMC representatives noted that partial construction curtains will be used to help contain debris and dust. KMC team members also noted that all possible options were reviewed for the placement of the crane that will soon be erected on KMCs property.

Community members also requested confirmation that construction work was being completed on the days and times as required by KMCs construc-tion permits. Members of KMCs construction and leadership teams were

apologetic about construction that occurred on a holiday and reassured better communication between con-struction managers and workers to prevent similar future occurrences.

Lastly, residents requested future notification of when major construc-tion noise or movement impacting the community would occur, for example, through frequent updates to KMCs construction website, potential quarter-ly updates at neighborhood board meetings, and communication via elected area legislators.

To facilitate better communication with the community, KMC leaders encouraged the public to visit http://www.kapiolani.org/construction/ for ongoing updates, schedules, and additional information on KMC's con-struction project. Specific questions or concerns regarding construction can also be directed to KMCs Construc-tion Information Hotline at (808) 535-7669.

Kapiolani Medical Center Auditorium (January 21, 2014): Members of Kapiolani Medical Center & Hawaii Pacific Healths executive leadership team and construction team share their vision for the future .

Implementing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, or more commonly referred to as Obamacare, since its enactment in 2010 has not been without its chal-lenges. To Hawaiis great ad-vantage, the Hawaii Prepaid Health Care Act, passed in 1974, has al-lowed Hawaii to maintain some of the highest insurance coverage rates in the nation, with an uninsured pop-ulation of 8-10%.

However, this means that the Hawaii Health ConnectorHawaiis enroll-ment portal for insurance plans under the federal Affordable Care Acthas faced difficulties in enrolling enough people to remain financially sustaina-ble. Further exacerbating the sustain-ability of the Connector is that feder-al grant funds that currently fund the Connector will expire on January 1,

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2015. Although the Connector is seeking an extension to use those funds beyond December 31, 2014, questions remain about the future sustainability of the Connector.

At the beginning of this legislative session, Representatives Della Au Belatti and Angus McKelvey, chair-persons of the House Committee on Health and Committee on Consumer Protection and Commerce, respec-tively, introduced a package of bills intended to help the Hawaii Health Connector improve transparency, accountability, and reliability, and ensure the Connectors financial sta-bility, as it continues to face tech-nical and administrative challenges.

Representatives Belatti and McKel-vey led committee hearings during the interim and continue to press the Connector and state departments in-

House moves measures reforming Hawaii Health Connector

volved with the functioning of the Connector during this session to un-derstand the challenges and problems faced by the Connector and develop legislative solutions to improve the Connector.

The following two bills were heard by House committees and continue to move through the legislative process:

House Bill 2529: Relating to Health. Reduces the membership of the Connector board of directors from fifteen to twelve members and changes the composition and voting status of the board. Creates the con-sumer, patient, business, and health care advisory group; health insurers advisory group; and the insurance producers advisory group to advise and make recommendations to the Connector board. Creates a special legislative oversight committee to review the financial and operational plans of the Connector. Establishes a sustainability fee that would be as-sessed by the Insurance Commission-er to support operations to fund the Connectors operations.

House Bill 2581: Relating to Insur-ance. Establishes a state innovation waiver task force to develop a plan and application for a state innovation waiver from certain portions of the Affordable Care Act. This task force presents a further opportunity to re-structure the Hawaii Health Connect-orin the context of other innovation reforms that realize the goals of the Affordable Care Actand continue to tailor health care reform in Hawaii to Hawaiis unique health circum-stances.

To continue to track the progress of House Bills 2529, 2581 and other health-related bills, visit www.capitol.hawaii.gov

Hawaii Health Connector FAQs for Individuals Q: Do I need to purchase insurance through the Connector if I receive

coverage through my employer? A: No, you do not. Hawaiis unique Prepaid Healthcare Act requires em-

ployers to provide healthcare to employees working more than 20 hours a week.

Q: Do I have to purchase health insurance through the Hawaii Health

Connector? A: No, you do not. You can purchase insurance privately, though the Con-

nector may help you discover any subsidies or tax credits for which you may be eligible.

Q: When does the enrollment period for health insurance end? A: The enrollment period for health insurance purchased through the Ha-

waii Health Connector ends on March 31. It will not reopen until November 15, though you may be able to purchase insurance privately between those dates. Please check with an insurance provider for additional details.

Q: How can I get help from the Hawaii Health Connector? A: For individuals wishing to purchase individual health insurance plans

through the Hawaii Health Connector, visit www.hawaiihealthconnector.com, call (877) 628-5076 (toll free, 8:00 am-8:00 pm), (855) 585-8604 (TTY/TDD), or email support@hawaiihealthconnector.com

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This year Representative Della Au Belatti is pleased to welcome a group of enthusiastic, hard-working, up-and-coming professionals to her legisla-tive staff. These staff members bring varied experiences and educational backgrounds to provide District 24 with exceptional resources during this legislative session.

Robert Choy, Committee Clerk Robert is a December 2013 graduate of the University of Hawaii at Mnoa with a background in Public Policy and Health Policy and Man-agement, and a major in Communi-cology. In 2012, Robert interned at the United States House of Repre-sentative for the Office of Mazie Hi-rono. As Representative Belattis Health Committee Clerk and one of two full-time staff members during session, Robert is assisting with the review and tracking of all bills mov-ing through the Health Committee; research on health issues including the Affordable Care Act, dental health laws, and children health; and constituent communications.

Shanthi Rajagopalan, Legislative Aide Also a December 2013 graduate, Shanthi was named valedictorian of her graduating class at Hawaii Pacif-ic University and was honored with the distinction of Summa Cum Laude. In addition to a major in Justice Ad-ministration, and a minor in Psychol-ogy, Shanthi volunteered during her last year of studies as a Judicial Ex-tern for the Honorable Justice Simeon Acoba and as an intern at the Office of the Public Defender in Honolulu. Originally from California, Shanthi has also interned at the Center on Ju-venile and Criminal Justice in San Francisco. As the second of two full-time staff members, Shanthi is assist-ing with constituent communications and the review and tracking of legis-lation related to women and families,

mental health issues, insurance cov-erage, and community development.

Kimi Murphy Ide-Foster, Legisative Aide Kimi is currently enrolled in her fi-nal year at the William S. Richard-son School of Law. Kimi received her undergraduate degree from Pitzer College in Claremont, Califor-nia with a major in Political Science. A Fulbright Scholar finalist, Kimi also has a strong background in in-ternational studies. Kimi has an ex-tensive background in legal work, having interned at the Federal Bu-reau of Investigation; the legal de-partment of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; the Law Offices of James Stone; and the Law Offices of Eric Seitz. Kimi is assisting Representative Belatti with legal research and writing on the Affordable Care Act, health reg-ulatory and safety issues, and wom-ens health issues.

2014 Session Staff features recent graduates &

William S. Richardson School of Law students

Sharde Kamlamalamaonlani Mersberg Freitas, Legislative Aide Sharde, also a law student in her final year at the William S. Richardson School of Law, has her Masters De-gree in Public Health, Health & Policy Management from the University of Hawaii at Mnoa, and a Bachelor of Arts in Biology with a minor in Chem-istry from the University of Redlands. An active volunteer in the community, Sharde has contributed her time to the Medical-Legal Partnership for Chil-dren in Hawaii, Volunteer Income Tax Assistance, Papa Ola Lkahi (Native Hawaiian Health Care Board), and Imi Hale-the Native Hawaiian Cancer Network. Sharde is also a re-cipient of the 2012 Patsy T. Mink Leg-islative Fellowship, during which she interned with the Office of Senator Daniel K. Inouye in the summer of 2012. Sharde is assisting Representa-tive Belatti with legal research and writing on access to health care ser-vices, Medicaid, womens health, and VAWA/Title IX compliance issues.

State Capitol (February 4, 2014) (Left to Right): Jon Kawamura, Office Manager; Robert Choy, Committee Clerk; Sharde Mersberg Freitas, Legislative Aide; Shanthi Rajagopalan, Legis-lative Aide; and Kimi Murphy Ide-Foster, Legislative Aide.