If You Want a Tax Appeal, Beware the Weekend
Ansaldo Breda Forced to Buy Back Defective Trainsets
Kakaako: Sneaky Legislative Tactic of the Day
Five Months Hassle With the Hawaii Health Connector--And Still No Insurance
SA: As of this writing, it has been five months since I first attempted to obtain individual health insurance through the Hawaii Health Connector (HHC), and I still don't have insurance. It has been five long months of frustration and aggravation, disbelief and worry.
First I tried to enroll on the HHC website, which was touted as being very "easy" and "user friendly." Nothing could be further from the truth. After getting booted out of the system numerous times, I finally gave up and went to the Waimanalo Health Center to get help from a trained HHC assister.
Luckily, that person was able to get me enrolled, but not without trouble of her own. Things went smoothly with applying for and receiving tax credits, although it took several weeks for it to be finalized.
I thought it would be easy sailing after that, because all I had to do was select a plan with my insurance company of choice, HMSA. I did so on Dec. 14, but called back the next day to change plans. Not a problem, I was told. My original request would be cancelled and my new request would be processed. Hah! Two weeks later I received a package in the mail from HMSA for the original plan, not the replacement plan.
For the past two months, I have made at least a dozen calls to both HMSA and HHC trying to get the new plan that I selected. HHC has told me three different times that my old request was cancelled and that the new request was sent to HMSA, but every time I talked to HMSA, they said that they did not receive the new submission....
When I first heard about Obamacare, I was very optimistic that I would get some relief from paying very high business insurance as a sole proprietor of a consulting company. President Barack Obama continually told me through the media that the Affordable Care Act would finally make health insurance "affordable" for a large segment of the uninsured or underinsured population. This, he promises, is the answer for millions of people just like me. Hah! What a joke.
When I finally took a good look at the insurance plans available to me through HMSA, I was shocked. Although the least expensive plan has a fairly reasonable monthly fee of $370 ($4,440 per year), the deductible is a whopping $6,350. Are you kidding me?
Luckily, I qualified for tax credits, which reduces my monthly fee to only $11 per month. However, it is conceivable that I could have to pay the full $6,350 in out-of-pocket expenses should I have any serious or long-term health issues. Many people do not qualify for any credits. How in the world can they afford to pay the full premium, plus all the out-of-pocket expenses? How can anyone consider this to be "affordable health care"?
AP: Obamacare Plan Bring Hefty Fees for Certain Drugs
read ... A consumer’s complaint: Connector no help at all
HMSA Thanks ACA for Adding 18,000 new HMSA Quest Medicaid Customers
HMSA Gold: March 23, 2014, is a milestone date for Hawaii and the nation. (Should be millstone.) It marks the deadline of the first open enrollment period for individuals under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). And it's an opportunity to consider if there's a better way to provide health insurance that recognizes the uniqueness of our islands....
I think the answer is yes. In fact, I believe conditions are right for truly universal health care coverage in Hawaii at a fraction of the cost of our ACA experience. We can ensure a broad safety net to provide our residents with the security that comes with health care coverage and take positive steps to control health care costs.... (Of course HMSA didn't tell us this before we wasted $205M.)
We can accomplish this if the state requests federal waivers from certain ACA requirements that recognize our unique insurance market. (Such as ... ?)
Another step is to better understand who in Hawaii doesn't have health coverage and why. The most recent data on Hawaii's uninsured is from the 2006 update of the Hawaii Uninsured Project. It's critically important that we have current information to make the best decisions on how we can reach the goal of universal health care coverage.... (HMSA wants the State to do its market research.)
Let's not forget that we have made much progress over these past few months. We know, for example, that thousands of our fellow residents registered for QUEST coverage, or Medicaid, with the state Department of Human Services. Over the past four months, HMSA QUEST has enrolled more than 18,000 members. (Ca-ching!)
The goal of universal coverage in Hawaii is closer than we think. We can achieve it by forging a strong partnership between the state government and Hawaii's health insurance industry (ie more taxpayer funded Medicaid). HMSA is ready to work with our state leadership to make Hawaii the national leader in health coverage. (Ca-ching!)
read ... More Like 'Millstone'
Lawyers Seek Permanent Hunt for Homosexual Child Molesters--Except those Employed by Government
SA: Mark Gallagher, a Kailua attorney, and Jeff Anderson, a St. Paul, Minn., attorney, are searching for possible victims of child sexual abuse before a unique two-year window to file civil claims for decades-old misconduct closes on April 24. (BTW: When is the last time they sued a heterosexual child molester in Hawaii?)
Two dozen civil lawsuits have been filed during the past two years in what state lawmakers initially intended as a one-time opportunity to help victims in cases where the statute of limitations had long expired.
But some lawmakers now want to leave the window open longer — perhaps permanently — an idea opposed by the state attorney general's office and the Catholic Church because it could potentially violate the due process rights of the accused.
Churches and other private organizations could have difficulty defending against claims involving priests and others who may have died or left the church or group. Two of the three priests in the newspaper ad, for example, are dead.
Witnesses, documents and other keys to establishing whether the abuse occurred and the organization was negligent could also be hard to produce because of the passage of time.
read ... Bills seek more time to file suit
Legislators Eager to Give Marijuana to Children
HTH: “We’re looking to take the task force from the Department of Health and maybe have a group at the University of Hawaii,” she said.
Kauai Rep. Dee Morikawa said the committee heard captivating testimony in favor of the task force during Friday’s meeting.
“We had a (abusive) mother come in with her (victim) daughter who has to use some form of oil to help her with her seizures (which were prolly caused by exposure to drugs),” she said. “It was very, very compelling.” (Yup. Their goal is to give marijuana to children. Quick IQ test: Were you 'compelled' by this story?)
Morikawa said the task force would help figure out how to dispense marijuana legally to those (children) who need it.
“It’s an illegal substance so you have to go forward very carefully. We need to figure out how we can legally dispense it to those who need it. And I hope we can get there in the next two years, if not sooner,” she said.
Possible members of the proposed (stacked with dopers) task force include the director of health, or the director’s designee; the director of public safety, or the director’s designee; the attorney general, or the attorney general’s designee; a police chief chosen by the Law Enforcement Coalition; a representative from the University of Hawaii College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources; a physician participating in Hawaii’s Medical Marijuana Program; a patient participating in Hawaii’s Medical Marijuana Program; a caregiver participating in Hawaii’s Medical Marijuana Program; a representative from the American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii; and a representative from Hawaii Medical Association.
read ... Drug Pushers' Taskforce
Hilo Dentist accused of putting woman in coma also accused of threatening employees
HNN: In July 2012 an employee says she asked Dr. Stover how his day was. According to court documents he allegedly responded with, "If he had a gun, he would shoot it out, and when the FBI arrives, they would know it was him, because he'd still be standing there."....
Terroristic threatening charges were brought against Dr. Stover. However they were dismissed because the judge felt there wasn't intent. The Hawaii County Prosecutors office is appealing that decision.
Another employee, a massage therapist, says she was rushed into surgical procedures despite not having any training. She says Dr. Stover has anger issues and would get mad about drugs and equipment not being prepped correctly, yet still used them saying, "the fact that he put drugs into someone and didn't know for sure what they were at first completely freaks me out."
Employees claim adult drugs were used on an 11 year old patient and two employees worried about Dr. Stover's state of mind.
"I think Dr. Stover is financially stressed out and continues to accuse staff of sabotaging his practice. I believe Dr. Stover will one day crack and hurt or even kill someone or himself," said the employee in a police report.
Related: Schatz, Baker Pushed to Loosen Requirements for Dentists
read ... Another One
Jail visitations cancelled due to staff shortage
KHON: Sen. Espero says he’s heard about jail workers who constantly call in sick.
“This is not a new issue. It’s come up a year ago, two years ago, four years ago,” he said.
People out on sick leave, and jobs that haven’t been filled, caused a crunch on staffing at Oahu and Hawaii Community Correctional Centers.
Visitors found out about the news by calling ahead of time, and by seeing this sign, and by seeing an unusually empty visitor parking lot.
The state made a decision to cancel visitation at both jails, which rarely happens at the Neighbor Island facilities, but occurs two out of the four weekends a month at OCCC.
“Is safety or security ever compromised?” KHON2 asked.
“No, that’s why the first thing we do is cancel something like visits, because we want to make sure everything else is good,” said Toni Schwartz, public information officer for the Dept. of Public Safety.
There are 200 job vacancies at the Dept. of Public Safety, and the majority are for adult corrections officers.
read ... Visitations
Obama Visits Leave 'Trail of Broken Budgets'
MN: The chief and police business administrator Greg Takahashi were explaining to the commission that February's $484,000 in overtime was the "most ever." The department is set to blast past its $3.9 million yearly budget for overtime by some $1.7 million.
When asked what events contributed to the large amount of overtime, Yabuta said Mrs. Obama's visit "encumbered a significant amount of overtime."
"Those things can't be helped," Yabuta said.
Wait a minute. Is he saying that when the president or his family costs a community a great deal of money because of a visit, the community is just expected to eat that expense?
All those huge motorcades we see on television with police lining the streets and riding motorcycles are paid for by the communities? The federal government doesn't reimburse localities?
We can understand the extra protection needed for the first family. But asking communities to absorb the cost of that protection is ludicrous.
It must mean that everywhere the president or the first lady visits a trail of broken budgets is left behind.
read ... Trail of Broken Budgets
Electronics recycling rules preposterous
WHT: I read with disbelief the article “Hawaii lawmakers push electronics recycling rules.”
Does anyone in the Legislature have an ounce of business sense? How in the world can a manufacturer of electronic equipment know where its products go and in what quantity? For example, let’s consider a ‘TLC” flat screen TV: Who is the manufacturer, who is the distributor, who is the wholesaler and finally who is the retailer? Now this manufacturer must establish a recycling center for every island with 1,000 inhabitants.
That means that Lanai with a 2010 census population of 3,102 could possibly have 2,100 recycling centers — one for each of the Consumer Electronics Association’s 2,100 members. If the manufacturers don’t comply they would have to pay an as-yet unspecified fee.
Can you imagine the size of the bureaucracy needed to enforce this farce? What is really scary is that this bill has already passed in the Senate.
read ... A LTE from Bob Green, Waikoloa
New state office building could revitalize Chinatown
Borreca: One of the last undeveloped parcels of land downtown could be the trigger for the urban renewal that the Chinatown and Aala Park areas so need.
The project is the Liliha Community Center.
It popped up in the House version of the state budget and will now go before the Senate budget committee for inclusion in the final draft of the 2014 state budget.
Although called a community center, the plan is for a one- or two-tower state office building, to house state departments ranging from the Department of Education to the Department of Health and other state agencies.
It is smack in the middle of Iwilei, so the only reason I can see to call it the Liliha Center is that you can see Liliha from there.
The property sits between the 130-unit Senior Residence at Iwilei and the state's Department of Human Services offices in the old OR&L railroad building, which is on the National Historic Register.
On Thursday, legislators and state officials toured the site and came away excited that new construction could do a lot to improve the decidedly gritty area.
LINK: 1992 EIS for Liliha Civic Center
read ... After 22 Years
Red Tape Makes $350K Homes Unaffordable
SA: Selling new single-family houses with ocean views on Oahu for $350,000 doesn't seem like it'd be a struggle, given the median price for previously owned homes sold last year on the island hit a record $650,000 and appears headed higher this year.
A struggle, however, is indeed what one developer has been through in an effort to create an affordable-housing subdivision in Nanakuli with three- and four-bedroom houses priced between $330,000 and $355,000....
Martin planned to start and finish building the 25-home subdivision in 2011.
Yet to date, only four homes have been built and three sold.
Martin said his struggles bringing the project to fruition were beyond anything he imagined even knowing that developing affordable housing in Hawaii is a daunting challenge for experienced developers because of high costs for land and construction.
"I wouldn't wish what I've gone through on my worst enemy," he said....
In a renewed effort to advance the project and make it more attractive to investors willing to finance construction, Martin obtained approval from Housing Finance earlier this month to remove some restrictions on who can buy a home in the subdivision. A similar approval from the City Council is needed, though the support from Housing Finance suggests the Council will also approve the change.
The restrictions were attached to the project under state law that allows certain zoning, tax and other benefits for qualified affordable-housing projects.
Restrictions include requiring that buyers live in the home and share future equity with Housing Finance if they sell the property within 10years, and excluding buyers if they already own residential real estate or earn more than 140 percent of Honolulu's median income, which equates to $134,120 for a family of four.
Housing Finance agreed to remove those restrictions for 13 of the 25 homes, which keeps the project in compliance with rules for such affordable-housing projects that require the restrictions for at least half the homes.
Martin said he expects the change will encourage lenders to finance construction because the 12 homes without buyer restrictions will be more attractive to buyers, while a bigger pool of buyers can buy the homes.
read ... Red Tape
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