Health Care

... Change in Uninsured Rate Between 2010 & 2017 -4.04% ....

...the case is expected to reach the Supreme Court, where the matter may be finally settled....

...It is very tempting for a DOE administrator to think, “There’s no benefit for us if we do all this work because the Legislature needs to fund us anyway...."

...2018’s Best & Worst Cities for People with Disabilities....

...Follow-Up on Recommendations from Report No. 15-20, Audit of the Department of Human Services’ KOLEA System....

...The term “hate crime” comes up six times in the report but the phrase “child molestation” never appears....

...Americans initiating heroin use dropped by around half from 2016 to 2017. The number of Americans misusing opioids also dropped for the second year in a row, and the number receiving specialty treatment for heroin use increased....

"...Behavioral Specialists described an alarming frequency of significantly dangerous behaviors exhibited by a number of students, including suicide attempts that were nearly fatal...." 

...Annual skin cancer diagnoses: 20.3 per 100,000 residents....

...only 35 percent of daughters and 19 percent of sons had received all three shots of the vaccine series....

... and Hawaii dead last in Physician Medicare Acceptance Rate ....

... Under the new criteria, recipients for grants must either follow a “sexual risk reduction model” or a “sexual risk avoidance model” ....

...Beginning Aug. 10, 2018, the Hawai‘i Department of Health will require all Home Care Agencies to apply for licensure by the state....

"...under both state and federal fair housing laws, a person with a disability has the right to request ... use of an assistance animal that works, assists, provides emotional support...."

...This provision would block (preempt) county governments in Hawaii from passing their own laws to reduce tobacco use, including measures addressing the sale of candy-flavored tobacco products and menthol cigarettes that attract kids....

...Wide variations exist in diagnosis rates between states and cities....

...Of more than 1,000 cancer centers across the country, the UH Cancer Center is one of only 70 NCI-Designated Cancer Centers in the nation....

...according to the 2018 KIDS COUNT® Data Book, released June 27 by the Annie E. Casey Foundation....

...Hawaii spent the second-lowest share of its own dollars on Medicaid in 2016....

...495 young adults from Hawai'i will soon be receiving compensatory education and education-related services thanks to the recent settlement....

...CMS removes Social Security numbers, increasing fraud protection and consumer experience for millions of Americans....

...with 10 years of back payments thanks to a 3-2 decision of the Hawaii Supreme Court....

...patients and staff expected to occupy the new building in 2021....

...Anderson will be taking over for Pressler.  He has served as administrator of the Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Division of Aquatic Resources since October 2015....

...look to other places both here and abroad where assisted suicide is already legal....

... Haumea: Transforming the Health of Native Hawaiian Women and Empowering Wāhine Well-Being, a 150-page report ....

...study reveals dramatic eight-fold difference in percentage of state funds allocated to helping mentally ill....

...FTC Approves Final Order Imposing Conditions on Merger of Air Medical Group Holdings, Inc. and AMR Holdco, Inc....

...40 measures of access to health care, quality of care, efficiency in care delivery, health outcomes, and income-based health care disparities....

...51st for Annual Nursing Salary (Adj for Cost of Living)....

...attorneys filed complaint over violations of federal conscience protections....

...Hawaii has the highest proportion of 'A' grade hospitals in USA....

...The pilot is funded by the Hawai‘i Department of Health — Alcohol and Drug Abuse Division and involves a partnership between more than 30 community organizations....

...but Hawaii ranks 44th for kids dental health care....

...veterans experienced delays related to the processing of their enrollment applications, contacting them to schedule appointments, and completing comprehensive mental health evaluations....

...litigation against manufacturers, marketers, and distributors of opioid pain medications who have irresponsibly spread this terrible epidemic....

...In 2016, Hawaii had the highest life expectancy at birth (81.3 years) and Mississippi had the lowest (74.7 years), a 6.6-year difference....

...Congress’ gutting of the individual mandate tax penalty last year leaves the law unconstitutional....

...Bills that would have (1) established a task force to reduce suicides in Hawaii by 25% (HB2278 HD1), (2) designate September as Suicide Prevention Month (HB1703) and (3) create an application for smartphones designed to provide resources to Hawaii's youth (HB1704) all perished....

...We can learn a lot about the folly of this path if we look to other places here and abroad where assisted suicide already is legal. A quick survey turns up countless instances of the failures of these laws to safeguard the most vulnerable....

...the other night at 1AM, my 7 year old woke up moaning about not feeling well. She was running a 104 degree fever....

...“Assisted suicide is dangerous public policy with potentially deadly consequences for everyone, but especially people with disabilities, the sick, the poor, and the elderly"....

...United States District Court Judge J. Michael Seabright sentenced Cody Joslin, age 32, to 18 months in prison today for theft of funds from the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs....

The Senate Chambers will have HB2739 HD1 on the agenda (we have no idea where it will be on the agenda) when session opens tomorrow, March 29, 2018, at 11:30 a.m....

...but has the 5th-least punative Medical Board....

...Below are the 2018 rankings of the top 500 Healthiest Communities nationwide, and how they scored across each of the 10 categories....

...people would never tolerate those levels of cigarette smoke in a public place anymore. So why were they OK with pot smoke?....

...The assisted suicide bill passed 4-1 unamended by the Senate Judiciary Committee....

...the State is the senior partner in the tobacco business.  Just ask the vapers....

...On Friday, March 23, 2018 at 9:00 a.m. in room #016....