COVID-19

...The numbers show Hawaii AGs Claire Connor and Anne Lopez kept Medicaid fraud enforcement at or near zero just as COVID fraud was spiking, thus allowing a massive wave of crooked COVID money to lubricate the system....

... A task force launched by U.S. intelligence chief Tulsi Gabbard to "end weaponization" has fallen apart after "drama" triggered by a memo it circulated that spread false claims — made by a January 6 rioter — against a CIA employee and a former Capitol Police officer ....

"...give credit where credit is due...."

... Hawaii politicians and lobbyists star in a movie about their own doings ....

... Kaiawe fraudulently obtained at least approximately $126,026 in CRUA assistance benefits ....

... “Unlicensed properties are not currently on our agenda for discussion” ....

...$22.2 billion in delinquent Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and COVID Economic Injury Disaster (EIDL) loans that were previously flagged for suspected fraud during the Biden Administration but never sent to Treasury for collection nor referred to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) for investigation....

... along with $1,409,964.35 in restitution to the Small Business Administration ....

...Ridership has been hovering around 81 percent since September, 2024, and it doesn’t appear likely that it will increase much in the foreseeable future....

"...the FSA issued the woman a payment of $65,745, to which she was not entitled...."

... there are bills still alive this session that propose much-needed reforms .... 

... the 2026 American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Recommended Child and Adolescent Immunization Schedule ....

...Mycko received $37,158.00 in PUA funds that he was not entitled to receive....

... life expectancy in Hawaiʻi declined by 1.4 years, from 82.1 in 2019 to 80.7 in 2021 ....

... ICA’s opinion dated August 28, 2025 concluded that the UIPA does not provide an express or implied private cause of action for disclosure of private information ....

...An Oʻahu grand jury has indicted Eldon Simer, 41, and Guy Villanueva, 30, for crimes related to a scheme to steal residential properties by forging and recording fake deeds....

... Linda Sun was formerly a high-ranking aide in New York’s government. Now, she and her husband face potential prison time ....

... This emergency proclamation allows Hawaiʻi pharmacists to continue providing the vaccine to anyone age 3 and older who wants it — without requiring a doctor’s prescription ....

"In the vacuum left by the Trump Administration’s chaos and politicization of science, the West Coast Health Alliance today issued unified, science-based vaccine recommendations ahead of the winter virus season."

"...RFK's antagonism towards vaccination programs will leave us vulnerable and children will die...."

... providing unified recommendations on immunizations to residents ....

... Turning Hawaiian’s story into a morality play might make for easy headlines, but it does little justice to the reality ....

... antivaxxer RFK cut $500M funding for MRNA vaccine research ....

... The test positivity rate statewide was 12.4% as of July 19, 2025, up from 10.9% the previous week ....

... the USDA whacked our state with an $11 million fine for its huge error rate two years in a row ....

... May 2025 total visitor arrivals represent a 91.0 percent recovery compared to pre-pandemic May 2019 ....

... The practice worked well and safely during the COVID-19 crisis and could do so again, the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii says ....

... Among Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) and low-income respondents, ratings dropped from 40% describing their health as excellent or very good to 23%—a 17 percentage point decrease in 18 months ....

... Ohio Senator confronts Hawaii governor over COVID lockdowns, says “tell me about the science behind why you locked your residents up” ....

... the age of pseudoscience ....

... AGs claim DHHS “illegally” terminated billions in “critical” health grants ....

... Hawaii’s anemic economic growth — the second slowest in the country — should be a sign ....

... HI Gov. on Djokovic Playing with RFK: ‘Hope Someone Hits Him with an Overhead’ ... ‘Shows Him What It Means to Hurt Somebody’ ....

... United Public Workers is actively engaged in a legal fight for Temporary Hazard Pay (THP) with employers in nine jurisdictions across Hawaii ....

... SB1278 would exempt from the state general excise tax any federal grants that Hawaii restaurants received during the COVID-19 lockdowns ....

... The latest foster parent arrested for child torture is a university instructor, social worker, DoE behavioral health specialist, and UH Manoa PhD student ....

... Kao pressured the bank to expedite approval of the fraudulent application by repeatedly claiming that he had discussed his application with United States Senators and their staffs who would intervene on Kao’s behalf if the bank did not quickly approve his loan ....

... nine counts of wire fraud and three counts of aggravated identity theft in connection with fraudulent claims for unemployment insurance and pandemic unemployment assistance ....

... as a result of the false and fraudulent applications, they received $1,365,000 in PPP loan funds ....

... Notably, four of the top five states Hawaii residents moved to—Texas, Washington, Nevada, and Florida—forgo individual income taxes on wage income ....

... conspired to fraudulently obtain at least $10 million in COVID-19 unemployment benefits from nine states including Hawaii ....

... increase the appropriation for the COVID hazard pay contingency to $115 million ....

... There are still around 27,800 fewer jobs in Hawaii than before the COVID-19 pandemic ....

... late-night parties in a cramped second-floor office where lobbyists and executives seeking government contracts lined up to drop cash and checks into a metal lockbox ....

... Comerford said his 45 years of living in Hawaii and 25 years of being a business owner are likely to end due to a recent state decision to collect taxes on federal Restaurant Revitalization Funds received during the COVID-19 lockdowns ....

... Hawaii students in the COVID cohort can expect on average 3.7 percent lower lifetime earnings ....

... officers who worked in a patrol function through the pandemic will receive 20% Hazard Pay based on the actual number of hours worked during the pandemic. All other officers will receive 15% Hazard Pay. All officers will receive 15% Hazard Pay for actual overtime hours ....

... 7,800 HGEA employees of the state’s public school system will receive 25% of their base salary for the duration of Gov. David Ige’s emergency proclamation from March 4, 2020, to March 25, 2022 ....

... disasters from COVID to Lahaina are the only thing holding Hawaii's economy together ....

... restaurants hit with surprise tax bill applicable to the financial aid received under federal Restaurant Revitalization Fund ....