SB 2089 Hawaii Senate · 2026 Regular Session

RELATING TO MENTAL HEALTH.

Summary

Expands the services eligible for Medicaid Prospective Payment System reimbursement to include certain services furnished by a federally qualified health center or rural health clinic and provided by mental health professionals under the clinical supervision of a licensed mental health professional. Requires the Department of Human Services to adopt rules for this purpose and seek federal approvals as necessary. Specifies that implementation is contingent upon and only to the extent approved by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Effective 7/1/3000. (HD2)

Issues: ✓ Healthcare

Bill status passed both 4 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

May 2026

Senate Passage

Mar 2026

House Passage

Apr 2026

Governor

Introduced Jan 14, 2026 Last action May 1, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons

What changed between versions

SB2089_HD2 → SB2089_SD1 · 4 edits

MODERATE

This bill expands Medicaid reimbursement to allow unlicensed mental health professionals to provide services under clinical supervision, aiming to address workforce shortages and reduce waitlists. The version changes the effective date to 2050 with implementation starting in 2028 upon federal approval, and clarifies that reimbursement applies specifically to Medicaid managed care plans.

Scope change

The bill's scope is expanded to explicitly include services provided to recipients under any Medicaid managed care plan, not just general fee-for-service beneficiaries.

TIMELINE

The effective date was changed from July 1, 3000, to January 30, 2050, with implementation beginning July 1, 2028, after Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services approval.

ELIGIBILITY

Reimbursement eligibility was clarified to specifically cover recipients eligible for Medicaid benefits under any plan under Medicaid managed care programs.

REQUIREMENT

Section 3 was rewritten to require the Department of Human Services to adopt rules allowing reimbursement for unlicensed professionals under supervision, replacing previous sections that focused on general rule adoption and federal waivers.

DEFINITION

The order of terms in the definition section was swapped to list 'mental health professional' before 'licensed mental health professional'.

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

May 1, 2026

Lower · Passed

Conference Committee Meeting will reconvene on Friday 05-01-26 5:05PM in conference room 329.

lower

Apr 30, 2026

Lower · Passed

Conference Committee Meeting will reconvene on Friday 05-01-26 1:45PM in conference room 329.

lower

Apr 27, 2026

Lower · Passed

Bill scheduled for Conference Committee Meeting on Thursday, 04-30-26 1:45PM in conference room 329.

lower

Apr 20, 2026

Committee

Re-referred to HSH, CPC, FIN, referral sheet 30

lower

Apr 16, 2026

Amended

Senate disagrees with House amendments.

upper

Apr 16, 2026

Introduced

Received from House (Hse. Com. No. 620).

upper

Apr 14, 2026

Lower · Passed

Passed Third Reading as amended in HD 2 with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and none excused (0). Transmitted to Senate.

lower

Apr 9, 2026

Lower · Passed

The committee on CPC recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 11 Ayes: Representative(s) Matayoshi, Grandinetti, Chun, Ilagan, Ichiyama, Iwamoto, Kong, Lowen, Marten, Tam, Pierick; Ayes with reservations: none; 0 Noes: none; and 0 Excused: none.

lower

Mar 25, 2026

Committee

Reported from HSH (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 1402-26) as amended in HD 1, recommending passage on Second Reading and referral to CPC.

lower

Mar 19, 2026

Lower · Passed

The committee on HSH recommend that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes were as follows: 9 Ayes: Representative(s) Marten, Olds, Hartsfield, Keohokapu-Lee Loy, Takayama, Takenouchi, Alcos, Garcia; Ayes with reservations: Representative(s) Amato; Noes: none; and Excused: none.

lower

Mar 12, 2026

Committee

Referred to HSH, CPC, referral sheet 17

lower

Mar 10, 2026

Introduced

Received from Senate (Sen. Com. No. 165) in amended form (SD 1).

lower

Mar 10, 2026

Upper · Passed

Report adopted; Passed Third Reading. Ayes, 25; Aye(s) with reservations: none . Noes, 0 (none). Excused, 0 (none). Transmitted to House.

upper

Mar 4, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on WAM recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, UNAMENDED. The votes in WAM were as follows: 12 Aye(s): Senator(s) Dela Cruz, Moriwaki, DeCoite, Elefante, Hashimoto, Inouye, Kanuha, Kidani, Kim, Lee, C., Richards, Wakai; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 1 Excused: Senator(s) Fevella.

upper

Mar 2, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on WAM will hold a public decision making on 03-04-26 10:31AM; Conference Room 211 & Videoconference.

upper

Feb 11, 2026

Upper · Passed

Report adopted; Passed Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referred to WAM.

upper

Feb 11, 2026

Committee

Reported from HHS (Stand. Com. Rep. No. 2196) with recommendation of passage on Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referral to WAM.

upper

Feb 2, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on HHS recommend(s) that the measure be PASSED, WITH AMENDMENTS. The votes in HHS were as follows: 5 Aye(s): Senator(s) San Buenaventura, McKelvey, Kanuha, Keohokalole, Fevella; Aye(s) with reservations: none ; 0 No(es): none; and 0 Excused: none.

upper

Jan 30, 2026

Upper · Passed

The committee(s) on HHS has scheduled a public hearing on 02-02-26 1:05PM; Conference Room 225 & Videoconference.

upper

Jan 22, 2026

Committee

Referred to HHS, WAM.

upper

Jan 21, 2026

Introduced

Introduced and passed First Reading.

upper

Jan 14, 2026

Introduced

Pending Introduction.

upper

5 primary · 3 co-sponsors