Certificate of Need

Certificate of Need Program

SHPDA administers the CON program for the State of Hawaii.  CON applications are considered in relation to six criteria categories:

  • The relationship of the proposal to the Health Services and Facilities Plan.
  • Need for and accessibility of the proposal.
  • Quality of the service or care that is proposed
  • Cost and financial impact of the proposal
  • Relationship of the proposal to the existing health care system
  • The availability of resources for the proposed service.

For more specific detail, please see the Certificate of Need Criteria Checklist.

CON Standard Review, Advisory Councils and Review Panel

Con Flow ChartCON applications are either subject to a standard review or administrative review. Typically, for a standard application, three advisory councils/panel review the application prior to SHPDA’s final decision.  For further details of the review process, refer to Chart 1, entitled “Typical Standard Application Review Flowchart.”

The three advisory councils/panels recommend approval, conditional approval, or disapproval to SHPDA. The advisory councils/panel are:

  • Subarea Health Planning Councils (SACs)
  • Certificate of Need (CON) Review Panel
  • Statewide Health Coordinating Council (SHCC)

Public Input

All advisory councils and review panel meetings reviewing standard CON applications are open to the public and the public may provide written testimony and/or testify during the meeting.

CON Administrative Review

SHPDA may also conduct an administrative review for CON applications if the application meets one or more of the following criteria:

  • Bed or service changes that have a capital expense of $1,000,000 or less, and have an increased annual operating expense of less than $500,000
  • An acquisition of a health care facility or service which will result in a lower annual operating expense
  • Any change of ownership, where the change is from one entity to another substantially related entity
  • An additional location of an existing service or facility
  • Any proposal that will not have a significant impact on the health care system

CON Applications and Decisions

For copies of current and past CON applications and decisions, please click here.

CON Application Forms

If you would like to submit a CON application, please click here for copies of the CON application forms