Health Care

...Three suicide bills that were introduced this session by House members have been assigned to a JOINT committee hearing of the Health & Judiciary committees....

...Ige Admin testimony shows that OHA rent-seeking is driving up hospital bills, public housing rents, and University of Hawaii tuition for everybody—including native Hawaiians.... 

...25 key indicators of dental wellness....

...$140M for 144 beds....

...since the facility closed on October 19, 2017, new physicians have been trained in hyperbaric techniques. HTC reopened on January 15, 2018....

...these three health-related taxes would have taken $31.25 billion over the ten-year period from 2018 to 2027....

...Connecticut and New York share the highest tax rate with $4.35 per pack, trailed by Rhode Island ($4.25), Massachusetts ($3.51), and Hawaii ($3.20)....

...Last Friday, Hawaii’s state senate introduced a bill that threatens to make it much harder to open a new vape shop. Now it’s emerged that another bill put forward at the same time could ban all online sales of vapor products....

...Missed Opportunities: Do States Require Screening of Children for Health Conditions that Interfere with Learning....

...highest cost of living in USA....

...Smoking doesn’t just ruin your health. It can also burn a nasty hole through your wallet....

...Medicare covers a wide variety of such services, in both hospital inpatient and outpatient settings....

"...for demonstrating ongoing compliance with performance standards to ensure safe, effective patient care...." (No kidding.  They really said this.)

...would expansion of Medicare be good for America?....

...“They were virtually unheard of in the U.S. 10 years ago”....

...The administration just told New York and New Jersey they would have to fund their $13 billion Hudson Tunnel rail project on their own, backing out of an Obama-era promise to foot half the bill....

...Analysis of data revealed that just 10% of active patients (55 of 532) were responsible for all assaults on staff. In fact, more than one-fourth were attributable to 3 highly-assaultive patients.... 

...the state should consider privatizing more of its medical facilities....

...we assessed the division’s surveillance and response to three disease outbreaks....

...Hawaii's Flu Vaccination Rate is 49.2 Percent, 18th Highest....

...DOH has filed a report with the Legislature identifying 14 priority areas of the state where 43,000 cesspool upgrades are critically needed to protect public health and the environment....

...Tourists are attracted to places with well-known Rat Lungworm infestations.  it is a selling point.  Really....

... Hawaii is spending $6.6 million this year on tobacco prevention and cessation programs, which is 48.1 percent of the $13.7 million recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ....

... In the past three years, violent crime increased 29% ....

...2017’s States with the Best Elder-Abuse Protections....

...Seniors in Hawaii are sick less often than those in any other state....

... no politician would want to get caught saying they supported limiting the number of  hospitals, dialysis facilities or MRI machines for rural areas.  And yet, that’s exactly what Hawaii's legislature has done ....

HTC has treated civilian divers for decompression sickness or “the bends” in Hawaiʻi since 1983....

...We are grateful for your partnership in striving for a Hawaii that leads the world in individual liberty and economic opportunity....

A federal court order is being ignored so union members at the Hawai’i State Hospital can manipulate work rules....

Hawaii public hospital workers earn less but cost more than their private sector counterparts.  How is that possible?

..."Andrew Walden of the Hawai'i Free Press, actually called HHSC the 'HGEA job trust'"....

...after decades ignoring the festering problems at the HGEA job trust State Hospital, AG and DoH pretend to suddenly be oh-so-very-concerned....

...the annual median cost of long term care services in Hawaii increased an average of 5.51 percent from 2016 to 2017....

San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Deputies said they arrested Randall Saito, the Hawaii State Hospital escapee, at approximately 10:30 a.m. Wednesday morning.....

...the median wait time for treatment in the Queen’s Medical Center ER is about six hours and 20 minutes....

...“Fat” is becoming the new normal in America....

...These rates are expected to affect approximately 34,000 individuals currently purchasing ACA individual plans....

...veterans in American Samoa must travel over 2,500 miles to receive care in Hawaii....

... “next nearest chambers on Guam and the mainland”....

“We want to make sure that people understand that we have a vision for the future.” -- Sen Brian Schatz

...The American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii filed a federal lawsuit against the Food and Drug Administration over federal restrictions that require a doctor's prescription to get an abortion pill....

... Hawaii moved up from 11th to 7th ....

...According to the Social Security Administration, one in five Americans lives with a disability, and one in 10 has a severe disability....

...Gallup says it's exercise, Bloomberg says it's labor unions....

...CMS data show that total costs for new Medicaid beneficiaries in Hawaii rose from $249.1 million in 2014 to $437.4 million in 2015-a 76 percent single-year increase. Costs per-enrollee jumped 73 percent in that same period, going from $7,462 in 2014 to $12,910 in 2015....

...Provides for an increased federal Medicaid matching rate (FMAP) for both Alaska and Hawaii....

... Only five states had statistically significant increases in single coverage premiums 2015 to 2016 -- Hawaii is 5th ....

...Change in Uninsured Rate Between 2010 & 2016 -- -4.36%....

...foster greater competition among doctors, hospitals, drug companies and insurance companies, by simplifying the regulatory environment....