Health Care

... highlights, frustrations at 2024 Legislature ....

... more than 500 health academy students who will receive hands-on training from Hawai‘i Pacific Health physicians and medical professionals to support the community clinic ....

... State lawmakers took an important first step last year by passing legislation that allowed Hawaii to join the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact ....

... From this point on, there will be no more public input via hearings. ...

... HB 1675: GET exemption for medical services paid for by Medicare, Medicaid, and TRICARE ....

... The files, which were leaked from within the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), were published by the US-based think tank Environmental Progress ....

... marijuana, abortion, parental rights ....

... Hawaii boasts the lowest percentages and costs in several key metrics ....

... from the average annual wage of physicians to the number of hospitals per capita to the quality of the public hospital system ....

... 2024 Legislature resumes session and Grassroot Institute is on the case ....

... to allow legal protections for any non-parent with sufficient access and means to remove a child of any age from their home state, and to bring them to Hawaii in the name of receiving “Gender Affirming Care” ....

... Final House Vote on Minor Access to Gender Affirmation Care ....

... supporting HB 1675 as the first step in getting rid of GET for medical services ....

... DOH conducted a full safety and security review of the State Operated Specialized Residential Program (SOSRP) and Hawai‘i State Hospital (HSH) facilities ....

... there were no professional licenses in Hawaii before Captain Cook arrived, therefore unlicensed midwifery is 'indigenous' ....

... 197 prescriptions have been written for death-inducing drugs in Hawaii since the passage of the state’s “medical aid in dying” law in 2019 ....

... first, Green's task force will seek out 'traumatized' State employees ....

... The tobacco industry spends an estimated $22 million on marketing in Hawaiʻi each year costing the state $611 million in annual health care costs, $1.1 billion in lost productivity, and nearly $1,000 per household in state and federal tax burden ....

... HB1780 Eliminating Good Friday? ....

... In a February 2, 2024 Order, 3rd Circuit Judge Robert D S Kim has voided HMSA, HMSA Medicare, and Quest ‘Participating Physician Agreements’ ....

... to increase the amount that hospitals in Alaska and Hawaii can be reimbursed by Medicare to perform outpatient procedures for enrolled seniors .... 

... contending that the EUTF had unconstitutionally diminished accrued retiree health benefits under Article XVI, Section 2 of the Hawai‘i Constitution ....

"...staff’s intentional attempts to inflate their pay...."

... American Lung Association “State of Tobacco Control” report releases Hawai‘i grades for tobacco control policies, outlines steps to reduce burden of tobacco ....

... Passage into law would take an important step toward further rejecting a federal prohibition scheme in practice and effect ....

... Hawaii 8th highest cost of smoking ....  

... City and County of Honolulu had nearly a year to prepare for the July 1, 2022 handover, but somehow didn’t get the billing contract established ....

... The first application window opened on September 9, 2023 and closed on October 2, 2023. On Wednesday, just in time for Christmas, 492 awardees received acceptance letters. ....

... EMS neglected to bill patients for ambulance rides starting July 1, 2022 ....

... a story that fused the tax-funded outlet’s search for niche necessities that require government funding with its ongoing attempt to defy science and pretend humans other than biological women get periods ....

... green-light compacts for other medical professionals, such as nurses, physical and occupational therapists, emergency medical service personnel, psychologists, audiologists ....

... Prospective healthcare providers need state permission before they can build new hospitals or offer other services in Hawaii ....

... American Lung Association’s ‘State of Lung Cancer’ report reveals improvement in survival rate for people of color, examines toll of lung cancer state-by-state ....

...  Honolulu achieved additional points in this year’s rankings for having transgender-inclusive healthcare benefits ....

... repealing CON laws in Hawaii could result in “11 more hospitals, including four more rural hospitals [and] two more ambulatory surgical centers” ....

... Could broader use of telehealth improve the quality of healthcare in Hawaii? ....

... Queen’s to formalize the purchase of WGH scheduled for March 31, 2024 ....

... DOH convened more than 250 stakeholders, advocates, and visionaries across the state to discuss the Healthy Hawai‘i Strategic Plan 2030 ....

... the statement denounces discrimination, including transphobia and transphobic action, which is recognized as a threat to public health ....

... now in a locked room at the Honolulu airport, waiting for state officials ....

... Hawaii’s hospitals, walk-in clinics and other healthcare providers have been held back for decades by arcane regulations known as 'certificate of need' laws ....

... The complaint alleges that the PBMs’ business practices have driven skyrocketing prices for brand-name prescription medications over the past decade ....

... "surgeries that remove or add body parts associated with a given gender – such as genital removal or breast removal" and "treatments using puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones for the purpose of developing characteristics inconsistent with a child's sex." ....

... $30 million in educational loan debt repayment to health professionals licensed or otherwise certified to practice in and provide care to patients in Hawai‘i ....

... coverage will continue through at least the end of this year without interruption except for those who voluntarily ask Med-QUEST to end their coverage, those who have moved out of state or those who are deceased ....

... among the heartbreaking losses earlier this month in fire-ravaged Lahaina were three healthcare clinics that served approximately 30,000 patients ....

... KMCWC will purchase a year’s supply of mifepristone (1,000 doses), and DOH will reimburse KMCWC for any unused doses ....

... how a licensure compact is likely to benefit Hawaii residents ....

• waiving property taxes for the affected property owners
• clearing the way for out-of-state medical professionals to attend to the needs of those affected by the tragedy

... a coalition of 20 states (including Hawaii) opposing "anti-transgender" laws in Tennessee and Kentucky blocking children from receiving puberty blocking hormones and gender change surgeries ....