HLS 23RS-815 ORIGINAL
2023 Regular Session
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 201
BY REPRESENTATIVE FISHER
HEALTH SERVICES: Creates a subcommittee to study the effectiveness of sickle cell
healthcare treatment practices in this state
1 A RESOLUTION
2To urge and request the chairman of the House Committee on Health and Welfare to create
3 a subcommittee to study the effectiveness of sickle cell healthcare treatment
4 practices in this state.
5 WHEREAS, according to the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH), there is an
6estimated eighty infants born with sickle cell disease in Louisiana each year; and
7 WHEREAS, the Medicaid program in Louisiana provides healthcare coverage to
8approximately three thousand patients with sickle cell disease in the state each year; and
9 WHEREAS, health outcomes for individuals with sickle cell disease are far worse
10compared to those individuals living without the disease; and
11 WHEREAS, patients with sickle cell disease experience shorter life expectancies, a
12higher rate of stroke, and longer wait times to see physicians and receive medications; and
13 WHEREAS, as it relates to hospitalization statistics, patients with sickle cell disease
14commonly return to the hospital within a thirty-day time period from being discharged; and
15 WHEREAS, according to LDH, the goal of the business plan for the 2023-2024
16Fiscal Year is to build the foundations for the healthcare systems to monitor the health of
17patients with sickle cell disease in this state and to allow such patients to reach their fullest
18health potential; and
19 WHEREAS, in an effort to foster a more efficient system to care for the patients with
20sickle cell disease in this state, the Legislature of Louisiana enacted Act No. 647 of the 2022
21Regular Session; and
Page 1 of 2 HLS 23RS-815 ORIGINAL
HR NO. 201
1 WHEREAS, Act No. 647 of the 2022 Regular Session of the Louisiana Legislature
2charged the Louisiana Department of Health to develop the Louisiana Sickle Cell Disease
3(SCD) Registry, known as the Skylar-Cooper Database; and
4 WHEREAS, the steering committee for the registry conducted an assessment and
5provided recommendations in furtherance of developing the registry; and
6 WHEREAS, while such efforts from the Legislature of Louisiana have contributed
7to the advancement of sickle cell healthcare programs, it is the duty of the legislators in this
8state to ensure the effectiveness of such efforts.
9 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the
10Legislature of Louisiana does hereby urge and request the chairman of the House Committee
11on Health and Welfare to form a subcommittee to study the effectiveness of sickle cell
12healthcare treatment practices in this state.
13 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the chairman of the House Committee on Health
14and Welfare or his designee shall serve as chairman of the subcommittee at its initial
15meeting to be held before September 15, 2023.
16 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that on or before February 1, 2024, the subcommittee
17established by this Resolution shall submit to the House Committee on Health and Welfare
18and the David R. Poynter Legislative Research Library a written report of its findings and
19recommendations.
20 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
21secretary of the Louisiana Department of Health.
DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute
part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
HR 201 Original 2023 Regular Session Fisher
Creates a subcommittee to study the effectiveness of sickle cell healthcare treatment
practices in this state.
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