REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH TO CONDUCT A STUDY ON THE COSTS AND BENEFITS OF REQUIRING WATER SUPPLIERS IN THE STATE TO ADJUST FLUORIDE LEVELS IN THEIR WATER SYSTEMS TO MEET THE OPTIMAL FLUORIDE LEVEL FOR COMMUNITY WATER FLUORIDATION AS ESTABLISHED BY THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES.

HR30

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.R. NO.

30

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026

STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE RESOLUTION

requesting the department of health to conduct a study on
the costs and benefits of requiring water suppliers in the state to adjust
fluoride levels IN THEIR WATER SYSTEMS to meet the optimal fluoride level for
community water fluoridation as established by the United States Department of
Health and Human Services
.

����
WHEREAS, drinking
fluoridated water is a safe and cost-effective way to reduce cavities and to
help protect against tooth decay; and

����
WHEREAS, drinking
water with the optimal fluoride concentration helps keep teeth strong and
reduces tooth decay by approximately twenty-five percent; and

����
WHEREAS, most
states and many countries, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and
Singapore, require fluoridation, or the addition of fluoride, in their public
water systems; and

����
WHEREAS, in
the State, only military bases currently add fluoride to their water supplies,
meaning that approximately eighty-nine percent of the State's residents lack
access to the benefits of fluoridated drinking water; and

����
WHEREAS, this
lack of community water fluoridation contributes to the State's high prevalence
of tooth decay, which affects many adults and approximately seventy percent of the
State's children; and

����
WHEREAS, many
of the State's residents receive minimal to no routine dental care; and

����
WHEREAS, many
residents do not have dental insurance, and Medicaid managed care plans cover
dental services for children but not for adults; and

����
WHEREAS, the
State's hospitals experience thousands of visits per year for dental
emergencies that routine dental care would likely have prevented; and

����
WHEREAS, requiring
fluoridation in the State's public water supplies will help support residents'
oral health in the absence of, or in addition to, other dental care services;
now, therefore,

����
BE IT
RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-third Legislature of the
State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2026, that the Department of Health is
requested to conduct a study on the costs and benefits of requiring water
suppliers in the State to adjust fluoride levels in their water systems to meet
the optimum fluoride level for community water fluoridation as established by
the United States Department of Health and Human Services; and

����
BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED that the Department of Health is requested to submit a report of its
findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to the
Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular
Session of 2027; and

����
BE IT FURTHER
RESOLVED that a certified copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
Director of Health.

OFFERED BY:

_____________________________

Report Title:
�

DOH;
Community Water Fluoridation; Study