Hawaii-2018-SCR47-Introduced

WHEREAS, Hawaii and its residents face a growing burden of largely preventable chronic illness such as heart disease, stroke, obesity, and diabetes; and

WHEREAS, people in communities experiencing health inequities often have fewer resources to take care of their health, which is reflected in significantly higher burdens of chronic illness, worse health outcomes, and shorter life expectancies; and

WHEREAS, over twenty-five percent of adolescents and over fifty-five percent of adults in Hawaii are overweight or obese; and

WHEREAS, the health and well-being of all people is a critical element in supporting a healthy and prosperous state that has a sustainable economy, growth in workforce participation and productivity, and a slowdown in the inflation of medical care expenditures; and

WHEREAS, the physical, economic, and social environments in which people live, learn, work, and play influence the adoption of healthy lifestyles, by making it more or less difficult for individuals to choose behaviors that promote or diminish health; and

WHEREAS, these environments are significantly influenced by policies developed by various state agencies relating to housing, transportation, education, air quality, parks, criminal justice, employment, and other policy areas; and

WHEREAS, public health agencies alone cannot change these environments, but must work collaboratively with the many other governmental agencies, businesses, and community-based organizations that are best positioned to create healthy communities; and

WHEREAS, strategies to create healthy communities can create co-benefits by simultaneously supporting state goals of increasing the availability of affordable housing, protecting natural resources and agricultural lands, improving infrastructure systems, planning sustainable communities, and addressing climate change; and

WHEREAS, this body recognizes that all agencies have a role to play in achieving health equity, defined as the attainment of the highest level of health for all people; and

WHEREAS, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines "Health in All Policies" (HiAP) as "a collaborative approach that integrates and articulates health considerations into policymaking across sectors to improve the health of all communities and people. HiAP recognizes that health is created by a multitude of factors beyond healthcare and, in many cases, beyond the scope of traditional public health activities"; and

WHEREAS, the HiAP approach was introduced by the federal government with tools for states and territories to improve health outcomes, to be an effective way to identify gaps in evidence and to achieve health equity, using health as a linking factor in bringing people together from across sectors to address major societal issues, focusing on co-benefits and win-win strategies, and harnessing the power that agencies and departments can bring through their areas of individual expertise by adopting a HiAP approach; and

WHEREAS, the American Public Health Association states the goal of HiAP is to "ensure that decision-makers are informed about the health, equity, and sustainability consequences of various policy options during the policy development process", and requires the following five key strategies during implementation:

(1) Engaging and visioning;

(2) Convening and collaborating;

(3) Developing a plan;

(4) Investing in change; and

(5) Tracking progress;

now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-ninth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2018, the House of Representatives concurring, that all state departments are urged to integrate and apply a Health in All Policies approach to their decision-making, including policy development and implementation, budgeting, and delivery of services; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that in applying a Health in All Policies approach to policy development and implementation, budgeting, delivery of services, and decision-making, departments are urged to:

(1) Consider the health impact, including short- and long-term economic, social, or health benefits and consequences;

(2) Seek the involvement of professionals within public health and health-related sectors when making decisions that could impact the well-being of individuals or the community;

(3) Use tools such as health impact assessments to identify the health impacts of a proposed policy or decisions;

(4) Consider including a designee from the Department of Health on boards, committees, and decision-making entities that play a role in shaping the economic, physical, social, and service environments in which people live, and therefore have an important role in promoting health and equity; and

(5) Initiate and facilitate ongoing dialog across government sectors to identify strategies to more fully integrate health considerations and equity into all state programs and policies, and promote better health outcomes through interagency collaboration; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Governor; Lieutenant Governor; Comptroller; Chairperson of the Board of Agriculture; Attorney General; Director of Finance; Director of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism; Director of Commerce and Consumer Affairs; Adjutant General; Chairperson of the Board of Education; Superintendent of Education; Chairperson of the Hawaiian Homes Commission; Director of Health; Director of Human Resources Development; Director of Human Services; Director of Labor and Industrial Relations; Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources; Director of Public Safety; Director of Taxation; Director of Transportation; Chairperson of the Board of Regents of the University of Hawaii; President of the University of Hawaii System; and Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs.

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title:

Health in All Policies; State Agencies

THE SENATE	S.C.R. NO.	47
TWENTY-NINTH LEGISLATURE, 2018
STATE OF HAWAII