Ige Proclamation Allows Oct 15 Tourism Reopening
Federal Appeals Court hears American Samoa Citizenship Case
COVID Count 90 new cases out of 1,737 tests
26 dead at Hilo Veterans Home: “At least 20 deaths are still pending verification and classification”
SA: …Kim emphasized the need for urgency against the backdrop of yet another COVID-19 fatality at the veterans home. On Wednesday, Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency reported another death, which pushed Hawaii County’s pandemic death toll to 28.
Health officials have yet to count the latest deaths at the Hilo veterans home, which accounts for 26 of Hawaii County’s coronavirus deaths. At least 20 deaths are still pending verification and classification….
When the VA team sent seven medical and health care experts to visit the veterans home on Sept. 11, 10 residents had died from coronavirus and another 35 were positive. By Monday when the state had released the first two of three reports, the count of COVID-19 cases at the veterans home had risen to 70 residents and 32 employees and there had been 24 deaths….
read … Hilo veterans home administration needs to be replaced, Mayor Harry Kim says
As death toll at Hilo veteran’s home mounts, family calls for criminal investigation
HNN: … As the COVID-19 death toll at Hilo’s Yukio Okutsu Veterans Home continues to mount, one family of a resident at the facility is demanding a criminal investigation….
Over the past month, 26 residents have died in connection with the COVID-19 outbreak at the facility.
In addition to calling for a criminal investigation into the home ― operated by Utah-based contractor Avalon Care Center VA Hilo ― Benevides has also enlisted the help of an attorney to look into the practices that contributed to 80% of the home’s residents contracting the virus.
“I want answers,” she said. “I thought my dad was safe. And knowing that he’s not, it just brings a lot of anxiety and fear.”
Attorney Jeffrey Foster says based on recent findings in reports issued by the VA and Hawaii Emergency Management officials, basic precautions to stop the spread of the virus were ignored.
“It’s not the treatment that the people who have protected us, who have protected our nation deserve," he said, adding that families need to know what happened.
“What were their protocols? Who was in charge? Who was making the decisions? Who was putting the procedures together. We don’t know that,” he said….
read … As death toll at Hilo veteran’s home mounts, family calls for criminal investigation
Flying to Hawaii? United Now Has a $250 Coronavirus Test for You
B: … United Airlines Holdings Inc. will offer on-the-spot coronavirus testing to customers flying to Hawaii who are willing to pay $250 to avoid a two-week quarantine on arrival….United officials see the virus screening service for Hawaii as a potential template for creating new “air travel corridors” that will provide enough assurance to governments and fliers to restart international travel….
Other carriers with Hawaii-tourism business, including American Airlines Group Inc., Alaska Air Group Inc. and Hawaiian Holdings Inc., will probably need to provide on-site airport testing to stay competitive as Hawaii rebuilds its battered tourism industry, Lamkin said…
United will direct customers flying to Hawaii from San Francisco to GoHealth Urgent Care for a rapid on-site test at the airport, a service that will cost $250 or more and will provide a result within about 15 minutes….
For those preferring to pay less, United will also refer flyers to Burlingame, California-based Color for an $80 self-collected test. Color recommends that travelers request its test -- which must be ordered by a doctor -- at least 10 days before the trip. Customers return samples taken at home 72 hours before their flight via overnight mail or a drop box at San Francisco airport. Results are provided 24 to 48 hours later.
Travelers can also find their own provider for the virus screening, as long as it’s one of the tests sanctioned by the Hawaii government….
United uses the GoHealth testing site at the San Francisco airport for its international crews working flights to nations with specific Covid-19 entry requirements….
read … Flying to Hawaii? United Now Has a $250 Coronavirus Test for You
Miske Unions in Charge of Temptation Island Quarantine Enforcement
MN: … “Temptation Island” is the only project currently filming on Maui, Dawson said. “Deadliest Catch,” which takes place at sea but also followed 14 days of quarantine, just finished filming off Hawaii island. On Oahu, “Magnum P.I.” is starting its third season, while Netflix just finished a feature film production, and two other shows plan to film on the island after Thanksgiving, including a reboot of “Doogie Howser, M.D.” titled “Doogie Kamealoha, M.D.”
“This is part of the statewide initiative to restart the film industry,” Dawson said. “And right now that is mainly focused on Maui and Oahu.”
Dawson said that no off-site locations have been approved for “Temptation Island” yet. Filming on public property, including the beach, would require a permit from the state or the county.
“It has not been determined yet whether they will be permitted to film on the beach,” Dawson said.
Maui Film Commissioner Tracy Bennett said Wednesday that the show has not applied for any permits from the county, but that they are working on possible locations and have been checking with closed resorts to see if they can use their amenities. Bennett said he and Dawson are encouraging private properties for off-site locations.
According to Bennett, the Andaz is not using geofencing or similar technology to make sure people stay on property. He said that the unions for the television crew and the hotel workers are keeping tabs on their members and are tracking everyone’s name, arrival date, room number, date of quarantine and date of testing on a spreadsheet.
“How do we make sure they don’t leave without permission? Well, they’re under contract,” Bennett said. “They’re union employees, so if they want to keep their job, they live by their contract, because if they violate a quarantine, they’re subject not only to being fired but arrested and jailed as well.”
He said that each member of the crew has a specific job and is allowed into certain isolation zones depending on when they finish quarantine and testing. They’re following a set of guidelines called “The Safe Way Forward,” which was crafted by several unions representing cast and crew and governs how often people are tested based on whether they are performers, crew on set, staff in production offices or remote workers outside the production environment.
Hotel workers are not staying at the Andaz. When asked if he was concerned about them catching the virus and bringing it home, Bennett said he wasn’t because of the safety measures in place at the hotel, from the Plexiglas barriers to the extra cleaning….
read … ‘Temptation Island’ to begin filming by end of the month --First group of 70 has tested negative for COVID-19
New restaurant rules raise privacy concerns
KHON: … For restaurants, each group must be within the same household, and one of them must provide their name, address, and phone number. But that’s not sitting well with everyone.
The new rules are raising privacy concerns for customers. There’s the possibility that the information can be used for identity theft or sold to a third-party. And how long can restaurants hold on to that information?
The Hawaii Restaurant Association says that the information will help with contact tracing if a customer or worker is infected with COVID-19, so it adds a layer of protection for public health. Customers are being asked to put more trust in their favorite restaurants.
“If we mess up on this, it’s not gonna help us in the long run, it will only hurt us. So I’m sure that the great majority of the restaurateurs will use the information only if requested by the health department and destroy it otherwise,” said Tom Jones of the Hawaii Restaurant Association.
Jones owns four restaurants and started collecting phone numbers, addresses and emails of customers before the second stay-at-home order because it was recommended by the National Restaurant Association. He says that customers were apprehensive about giving the information at first.
“Our policy was we would destroy the information after about 60 days and we wouldn’t use it for anything other than contact tracing, and most of the guests understood that and were compliant,” said Jones.
The mayor says that only one family member will be required to provide their name, phone number, and address. The information will be used only for contact tracing and it can be kept for 28 days. He’s counting on customers to provide the information because it benefits everyone….
HNN: Under order, Oahu restaurants will have to keep diners' contact details for 28 days
read … New restaurant rules raise privacy concerns
Ige’s proposal for furloughs would not impact county workers
HTH: … Whether the state proceeds with its plans or not, Hawaii County employees shouldn’t feel the pinch.
“All of the furlough discussion does not affect the county government,” said Mayor Harry Kim on Wednesday.
Kim said the governor, in his regular meetings with the mayors, has kept them apprised of his plans. The state budget is different from county budgets because its revenue sources — income taxes, general excise taxes and transient accommodations taxes, mainly — react more immediately to economic downturns. The counties, on the other hand, rely primarily on property taxes, which react more slowly to downturns….
“They’re not there just collecting their pay; (LOL!) they’re an important part of seeing that things get done,” Kim said. “Furloughs are not part of the plan.”…
COVID-Economy-State-Much-More-Susceptible-than-Counties
read … Ige’s proposal for furloughs would not impact county workers
Ige’s Eviction Moratorium Doesn’t Do What He Says It Does
CB: … Ever since attorney and landlord David Chee watched Gov. David Ige announce Hawaii’s eviction moratorium on April 17, Chee has been telling his clients that they could go to jail if they force their non-paying tenants to leave.
“This proclamation will immediately place a moratorium on eviction by preventing any eviction from a residential dwelling for a failure to pay rent,” Ige said in a press conference. “Any violation of this mandate is now a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of up to $5,000 and or a year in jail.”
Except that’s not what the moratorium actually does, a spokesperson for the Attorney General’s Office told Civil Beat. The punishment is civil fines, not a misdemeanor, which explains why the Honolulu Police Department hasn’t been enforcing the moratorium despite the city’s unprecedented policing of the pandemic stay-at-home order.
Enforcement of the eviction moratorium is instead being handled by the Office of Consumer Protection, which has launched fewer than 10 investigations thus far into misbehaving landlords and hasn’t fined or taken anyone to court yet….
Chee says Ige’s eviction moratorium has essentially forced both large companies and mom-and-pop landlords to carry the costs of housing thousands. While Chee mostly represents large landlords, a national study found smaller landlords have been particularly hit hard by the financial cost of eviction moratoriums.
“He has basically turned private housing into public housing,” Chee said of the governor….
One potential solution to the problem is rental subsidies. The Ige administration recently rolled out a multimillion dollar rental subsidy program funded with federal CARES Act money. Chee called the program “fantastic.”
“I’ve been telling my clients that it’s characterized as rent relief for tenants but it’s really rent relief for landlords because the tenant gets the credit and the landlord gets the money,” he said….
read … Ige’s Eviction Moratorium Doesn’t Do What He Says It Does
Hawaii Has A New COVID-19 Response Team. Will It Make A Difference?
CB: … Changes in leadership include a new acting state epidemiologist who recognizes the importance of bending public health guidance in order to facilitate other priorities, such as the need to prevent mass closures of local businesses or to allowing families from the same household to sit together at a park or the beach, Dr. Mark Mugiishi said.
“It was a breath of fresh air,” said Mugiishi, the chief executive of HMSA and a member of the House Select Committee on COVID-19 Economic and Financial Preparedness, on a newfound willingness of leaders to find a path forward that protects people against the virus while allowing them to learn how to live alongside it.
“Certain things are just important for people’s health and well-being, like allowing more people to wander around together when they exercise or go to a park,” Mugiishi said. “That’s just what we need as a society. So we also have to take those things into account.”…
This past Wednesday, Gov. David Ige announced a four-person executive leadership team to direct the state’s virus response, which has been widely criticized as understaffed, reactionary and, in some instances, disingenuous with the public.
The team includes Gen. Kenneth Hara, the state’s incident commander; Dr. Libby Char, acting director of the Hawaii Department of Health; Lt. Gov. Josh Green, who serves as a bridge between Hara and Char with specific roles in coordinating the state’s pre-travel testing program set to launch Oct. 15 and a future vaccination program; and Dr. Virginia Pressler, who is a liaison to the private sector as the head of a new and still ambiguous commission called Laulima Alliance.
The job titles of Hara and Green remain virtually unchanged, but their roles and duties now have greater definition. And they have more autonomy to devise solutions and put them into practice, according to Mugiishi and Green.
Overall, Green said the new power structure is stronger because it replaces key decision-makers who were rigid and insular in their thinking with those who are more flexible and willing to embrace different perspectives.
The shift in philosophy would not have been possible prior to the departures of Bruce Anderson, the former health director who retired last week, and Dr. Sarah Park, the embattled state epidemiologist who was forced to take a paid leave of absence after a whistleblower exposed that the department had grossly exaggerated its capacity to perform contact tracing, according to Green.
Both Mugiishi and Green say DOH’s new acting director Dr. Libby Char offers a new approach to coordinating the state’s public health response — one that recognizes the need to rekindle the economy at the same time as it prioritizes its charge of managing the risk that the coronavirus poses to public health.
“This is less about epidemiological validity and dogma,” Mugiishi said. “That’s one input that comes in but the other input that comes in is how can we create a society as we recover that we can all live with?” …
read … Hawaii Has A New COVID-19 Response Team. Will It Make A Difference?
Honolulu City Council Chair Ikaika Anderson has officially resigned to Work as Union Lobbyist
KHON: … Alan Texeira was named to fill Anderson’s District 3 council seat until the election. Ann Kobayashi was named council chair and Tommy Waters as vice chair….
HNN: .. Some members of the council, including Heidi Tsuneyoshi and Kym Marcos Pine, expressed disappointment that Texeira was nominated as the replacement within three hours of Anderson’s resignation announcement, before other members of the council had an opportunity to weigh in on the issue….
read … Honolulu City Council Chair Ikaika Anderson has officially resigned
Caldwell to discuss status of program to stem spread of COVID-19 among homeless population
SA:… Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell is scheduled to discuss the status of the city’s Provisional Outdoor Screening and Triage (POST) program, which started in April to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 among homeless population, at 12 p.m. today at Ke‘ehi Lagoon Beach Park.
Other speakers will include Honolulu Police Department Lieutenant Joseph O’Neal and Office of Housing Executive Director Marc Alexander.
Watch the briefing via the video above, or go to Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell’s Facebook page.
Related: Census workers make progress in counting Hawaii’s homeless population
read … POST
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