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vaccine

West Coast States Issuing Joint Vaccine Guidelines As CDC And HHS Make Massive Changes And Cuts 

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California, Oregon, Washington, and Hawaii are releasing their own joining recommendations for who should receive Covid, flu, and RSV vaccines this fall. This decision was made to counteract the new vaccine guidance that will be coming from the Trump administration, which has also removed prominent scientists and health experts from the federal health department. 

The administration has also put individuals who are vaccine skeptics and critics in key roles throughout the department, leading to the four states wanting to take control. The recently terminated director for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Susan Monarez, testified to Congress about her fear of health in the US under Robert F Kennedy Jr as the head of the Department of Health and Human Services. 

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“There’s a real risk that recommendations could be made restricting access to vaccines for children and others in need, without rigorous scientific review.”

The four states have formed what they are calling the West Coast Health Alliance. The Alliance is urging Americans to get this year’s Covid-19 vaccine if they are pregnant, aged 65 or older, are immunocompromised/have a range of risk factors, or are just choosing to keep themselves protected. 

They also stated that children from age 23 months to six should receive the vaccine as should older children and teenagers who have not been vaccinated or have risk factors. 

“These recommendations represent a collaborative effort, done with humility and based on science, to meet our responsibilities to our communities and the public at large,” Dr Kenneth Fink, the director of Hawai’i’s department of health, said in a statement.

The states’ recommendations go against the Trump administrations current vaccine guidelines for Covid-19. Kennedy is one of the most prominent vaccine skeptics in the US, and he announced back in May that the federal government no longer recommends pregnant people and children receive the Covid-19 vaccine. 

They announced the West Coast Health Alliance in early September after the White House forced Monarez out. Monarez often went up against Kennedy over the ways he was trying to reshape federal vaccine policies and contradicting long-standing scientific research. 

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The acting head of the CDC under Trump is a former speechwriter and investment executive with no actual medical or scientific background. California governor Gavin Newsom said that the state health officials who developed the new recommendations within the Alliance are “all medical doctors.”

According to reports, the recommendations are also based on official guidance from major health associations like the American Academy of Pediatrics. 

Kennedy got rid of existing members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) in June. Even one Republican senator who’s also a medical doctor called this move concerning. Louisiana’s Bill Cassidy discussed the risk of rescinding the recommendation for an infant hepatitis B vaccine. 

Cassidy issued a statement calling for a “postponement of the ACIP meeting. If the meeting proceeds, any recommendations made should be rejected as lacking legitimacy given the seriousness of the allegations and the current turmoil in CDC leadership.”

In her congressional testimony, Monarez warned that Kennedy had told her that “the childhood vaccine schedule would be changing starting in September, and I needed to be on board with it.” She also discussed how she was fired after not pledging to “commit in advance to approving every ACIP recommendation, regardless of the scientific evidence.” She added that she also was terminated for resisting the removal of career public health officials that were responsible for vaccine policy without a legitimate cause. 

“If vaccine protections are weakened, preventable diseases will return,” Monarez testified.

mosqiotos

Conservationists Are Dropping Thousands Of Mosquitos By Drone In Hawaii 

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This summer, dozens of biodegradable pods containing about 1,000 mosquitos each were dropped by drone in the forests of Hawaii. While releasing a high population of mosquitos into a natural environment may seem like a questionable choice, it’s all in the name of conservation and wildlife protection. 

The mosquitos themselves are non-biting male mosquitos that carry a common bacterium that will ensure new eggs don’t hatch when the males mate with wild females, according to reports from CNN. 

The main goal for this is to help control the archipelago’s invasive mosquito population which is greatly impacting the native bird population, particularly among rare Hawaiian honeycreepers. 

The birds play a central role in Hawaiian culture, as they are key pollinators and seed dispersers. Reports indicate that at one time, there were more than 50 known species of honeycreepers in Hawaii, and now there are only 17 left, and they are mainly endangered. 

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Just last year, the ‘akikiki, a small gray bird, was practically extinct in the wild, and less than 100 of the yellow-green ‘akeke’e are estimated to still be alive. According to Dr. Chris Farmer, Hawaii program director for the American Bird Conservancy (ABC), one of the biggest “existential threats” is avian malaria, which is spread by mosquitoes.

Mosquitos themselves are not actually native to Hawaii, and were initially reported on the islands in 1826. It’s believed that they were unintentionally carried over to the islands by whaling vessels and “caused waves of extinction,” according to Farmer. Many native birds have no resistance to malaria, including the honeycreepers. 

Mosquitos are also known to thrive in warmer tropical habitats, so the low elevations of Hawaii’s islands are a perfect breeding ground. Farmer stated that the higher mountains of the islands offer refuge for honeycreepers and other avian species. 

“With climate change, we are seeing warmer temperatures and we’re watching the mosquitoes move up the mountains. [In places like Kauai] we’re watching the populations of birds there just completely plummet.”

“It’s a constant march of mosquitoes moving up as the temperatures allow them and the birds getting pushed further and further up until there’s no habitat left that they can survive in. If we don’t break that cycle, we’re going to lose our honeycreepers,” Farmer emphasized. 

Conservationists have long been looking for a way to maintain and protect the honeycreeper population by controlling mosquitos. Farmer stated that this has been no easy feat, as mosquitos are far spread throughout the large landscape of the islands. 

Pesticides have been one solution, however, they also damage other native insect populations that are integral to the multiple ecosystems throughout Hawaii. 

Mosquitos in general are also a major threat to human health, as they spread diseases such as malaria, dengue fever, the zika virus, and more. The recent move to drop drones among Hawaii is a part of a solution known as the Incompatible Insect Technique (IIT).

The IIT involves releasing male mosquitos that contain a strain of bacteria that causes non-viable eggs to be laid when they mate with females. Over time, with repeated releases, the wild population should decline. 

In 2016, ABC teamed up with Birds, Not Mosquitos, a multi-agency partnership dedicated to protecting Hawaiian honeycreepers. The agencies decided that IIT would have the greatest success rate when it came to helping protect the bird population while investigating how to combat avian malaria. 

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“The mosquito that transmits avian malaria is different from the one that transmits human malaria,” explained Farmer.

Due to this difference, Farmer and his team began testing various strains of Wolbachia, the naturally occurring bacteria in the male mosquitos, to determine which would provide the greatest success rate. 

The process was extensive and took many years due to a “combination of the science, community engagement and the regulatory process. Naturally, whenever you say, ‘I want to release millions of mosquitoes in the forest,’ people have a lot of very legitimate questions.”

“We have a rough estimate for how many mosquitoes there are in the wild, and we try to release 10 times as many of these Wolbachia mosquitoes, so (that they) find these females and are able to mate with them, and then their eggs don’t hatch. Right now, we’re releasing 500,000 mosquitoes a week on Maui and 500,000 mosquitoes a week on Kauai,” says Farmer.

“[This is] the first known instance of specialized mosquito pods being dropped by drones. We have more flexibility with deployment timing in areas that generally have very unpredictable weather and it’s safer because no humans need to ride in the aircraft to deploy the mosquitoes,”  says Adam Knox, project manager for ABC’s aerial deployment of mosquitoes.

“[It also] reduces costs, team flight times, emissions and noise, which in turn means cheaper, more sustainable deployments,” he stated.

Farmer is predicting it will be about a year before they see real results of the most recent deployment, and they’re hoping that will buy them enough time for the bird population to recover. He’s confident that they’ll see at least some improvement, which could mean amazing things for the future of conservation. 

“We have the ability to save these species. If we don’t save these birds in this decade, then they probably won’t be here for the future. And so the ability to make a difference in the world, make a difference in the future, motivates us all.” 

hawaii

Tropical Storm Hone To Hit Hawaii With Fire And Flooding This Weekend 

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Tropical Storm Hone is threatening to deliver severe and dangerous weather conditions to Hawaii this weekend. Hawaii’s Big Island is currently under a tropical storm watch as Hone is on track to pass the state very closely this weekend, delivering heavy rains, strong winds, dangerous sea conditions, and concerns of wildfires, according to reports.

“Tropical activity has been abundant in the Pacific Ocean this year, but none of the seven East Pacific named storms have come close to Hawaii. Hone, the first storm to form in the Central Pacific since 2019, will break that mold,” wrote Mary Gilbert, a meteorologist for CNN.

The storm is set to pass around 150 miles south of the Big Island on Saturday, and will last until Sunday morning. Rain and wind will be consistent throughout the weekend beginning early Saturday morning. 

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Experts are predicting rainfall of 4 to 8 inches on the east and southeast parts of the Big Island, according to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center. Maui could experience about 6 inches of rain and Oahu 2 to 4 inches.

“Winds are expected to be strongest where they blow downslope [on the Big Island] from higher terrain, over headlands and through passes,” the CPHC warned.

The storm’s strongest winds could reach speeds of 73 mph and will last from late Saturday through Sunday. 

There is also major concern over the potential for wildfires from the storm, especially considering Hawaii is still recovering from devastating wildfires that have been named the “most devastating fires in US history,” according to CNN.

“Drier air and windy conditions ahead of Hone could elevate fire weather concerns across leeward areas statewide (Saturday),” the National Weather Service in Honolulu said.

Hone is projected to strengthen late Sunday into Monday, and could even become a hurricane briefly.

maui

Maui Wildfire Case Against Hawaiian Electric And Others Reach $4 Billion Settlement For Plaintiffs

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On Friday, the governor of Hawaii announced a $4 billion settlement for the plaintiffs involved in multiple lawsuits regarding the Maui wildfires that took place last year. 

“The seven defendants will pay $4.037 billion to provide compensation to all those who have brought claims for compensation arising from the Aug. 8, 2023 windstorms and wildfires on Maui, including the approximately 2,200 affected parties who filed lawsuits,” according to a news release from Hawaii Governor Josh Green’s office.

The defendants in the suit include the state of Hawaii, County of Maui, Hawaiian Electric, Kamehameha Schools, West Maui Land Company, Hawaiian Telcom, and Spectrum/Charter Communications,” according to the release reported on by CNN. 

Green stated in the release: “[The settlement] will help our people heal. My priority as Governor was to expedite the agreement and to avoid protracted and painful lawsuits so as many resources as possible would go to those affected by the wildfires as quickly as possible.”

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“Our objective is to make sure a tragedy like this never happens again,” Shelee Kimura, president and CEO of Hawaiian Electric, said in a statement.

Jesse Creed, one of the attorneys for the plaintiffs, told CNN the “settlement came about through extensive negotiations in person and on Zoom. Among the factors weighed were not just the defendants’ liability but also their ability to pay.”

“In this case the challenge has always been that the devastation to the people of Maui is enormous,” he said. 

“And the fight continued against the insurance companies. As a lawyer for the plaintiffs, we don’t think the insurance companies should take a penny as long as the victims are not fully compensated,” he stated. 

Jacob Lowenthal, another plaintiff attorney, in a statement to CNN said:

“We recognize that this settlement is far from making the community of Maui whole. But this will provide critical compensation to Maui sooner than much later without extensive litigation that brings with it no promise or guarantee that more would even be possible. This money is the first step of many to allow our home to heal.”

plane

Military Families In Hawaii Heading To Court Over 2021 Jet Fuel Leak That Tainted Water 

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A massive environmental injury case will be going to trial in Hawaii this week. The case itself regards an incident that occurred in 2021, when a US military fuel tank facility, that was located underground, poisoned thousands of people after leaking jet fuel into Pearl Harbor’s drinking water supply. 

According to reports from NPR, a US District Court judge in Honolulu will hear the lawsuit from 17 “bellwether” plaintiffs, who are made up of relatives of military members that represent more than 7,500 others, including service members in three federal lawsuits.  

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According to the court documents, the US government admitted that the spill, which occurred at the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility on November 20th, 2021, was a nuisance for the plaintiffs, and the US “breached its duty of care,” causing compensable injuries within the plaintiffs. 

The US government, however, disputed the plaintiff’s claims that the residents were exposed to jet fuel at such a high level that they experienced their alleged health effects. The health effects cited range from vomiting to rashes, with some even alleging their pet dogs experienced vomiting and illness. 

The plaintiffs submitted declarations which described how they got sick after the water crisis, leaving them with ongoing health problems such as seizures, asthma, eczema, and vestibular dysfunction, according to NPR. 

One of the individuals impacted is Nastasia Freeman, the wife of a Navy lieutenant and mother of three. Freeman described how the family initially assumed they had food poisoning from Thanksgiving 

“I had developed a rash on my arms with sores and lesions on my scalp, feet, and hands accompanied by a headache. I had a very strange sensation that I had never had before — I felt like my blood was on fire,” she said. 

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Nine days after the jet fuel leak, Freeman was told by a nurse that they had received multiple calls relating to tap water. Lawyers for the plaintiffs are arguing that Navy officials knew that the water had been contaminated but didn’t tell the residents not to drink it.

Freeman’s declaration filed in the case said: “It felt like we were being gaslit. We knew the water wasn’t safe, but the Navy was telling us that it was. They said they didn’t know what was in the water and that they were ‘investigating.'”

According to an investigative report performed by the Navy in 2022, a series of mistakes starting in May 2021 is what led to the November leak. In May an operator error caused a pipe to rupture, and caused around 21,000 gallons of fuel to leak. Most of that fuel spilled into a fire suppression line where it remained for six months, and caused it to sag, so when a cart rammed into that suppression line in November, the 21,000 gallons of fuel was released. 

“A bellwether trial helps attorneys to understand the likely success or failure of the cases that are in the pipeline,” explained Loretta Sheehan, a Honolulu-based personal injury attorney not involved in the water litigation.

“The outcome can help determine future damages to be awarded or settlements,” she said.

fires

At Least 55 Individuals Dead In Maui Due To Wildfires 

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The wildfires in Maui have killed at least 55 people and wiped out one of their most historic towns. Hawaii emergency management records have shown that there was no indication that warning sirens sounded before individuals started running for their lives. 

Residents, instead, received alerts on their phones, TV’s, and radios, however, widespread power outages limited the reach of these warnings. 

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According to reports, the wildfires are Hawaii’s deadliest natural disaster since the 1961 tsunami which killed 61 people, and the 1946 tsunami which killed 150 people on the Big Island. These events are what prompted the development of Hawaii’s emergency alert system which includes around 400 sirens throughout the chain of islands. 

Many survivors, however, stated in interviews that they didn’t hear any sirens of warning that would typically give them enough time to prepare and get as far away from danger as possible. 

Search and rescue operations are still currently underway, and Governor Josh Green warned that the death toll is likely to rise. 

At least three wildfires spread in Maui this week due to the dry summer and strong winds brought on by a passing hurricane. 

Lahaina was greatly impacted, and is reported to look like a gray, ash covered area filled with the bones of buildings and torched palm trees and boats. 

“Without a doubt, it feels like a bomb was dropped on Lahaina,” the governor stated. 

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Firefighters were able to create perimeters around more of the Lahaina area and fires as well as another nearby. 

Hawaii Emergency Management Agency spokesperson Adam Weintraub told The Associated Press that “the department’s records don’t show that Maui’s warning sirens were triggered on Tuesday, when the Lahaina fire began. Instead, the county used emergency alerts sent to mobile phones, televisions and radio stations,” Weintraub said.

Maui Fire Department Chief Brad Ventura said “the fire moved so quickly from brush to neighborhoods that it was impossible to get messages to the emergency management agencies responsible for alerts.

What we experienced was such a fast-moving fire through the … initial neighborhood that caught fire they were basically self-evacuating with fairly little notice,” Ventura said.

Bobby Lee, the president of the Hawaii Firefighters Association, stated: Maui’s firefighting efforts may also have been hampered by a small staff. There are a maximum of 65 firefighters working at any given time in Maui County, and they are responsible for fighting fires on three islands — Maui, Molokai and Lanai —” he said.

Hawaiian Airlines

Hawaii Likely To Tighten Travel Restrictions In 2022

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Covid-19 cases are once again on the rise in the US due to the highly contagious Omicron variant and lack of vaccination throughout the nation. Restrictions on inbound international travel have already begun to tighten, as travelers need to show proof that they’re fully vaccinated with a negative test result that’s no more than one day old. 

The state of Hawaii already has limited on-island medical centers and resources, so they’re considering strengthening their own requirements for those arriving to the islands. Hawaii’s Lieutenant Governor Josh Green is pushing for tighter travel restrictions to be implemented in the near future. 

“The recommendation should be that you’re either boosted or tested, real straightforward, and I think that will come in the New Year.”

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Throughout the entire pandemic Hawaii has implemented some of the strictest interstate entry requirements. 

After Hawaii launched its Safe Travels program, the state was met with a large number of tourists who were looking to escape to the islands. Governor David Ige responded to this uptick in travel by pleading with visitors to delay their visits so the hospitality industry could recover from the past summer. 

With the sudden and rapid increase in Omicron infections, Hawaii-bound travelers may find themselves facing stricter restrictions in the coming weeks. 

According to Jessica Lani Rich at the Visitor Aloha Society of Hawaii (VASH), there’s been an “increase in calls coming in from visitors who test positive while they’re already in the destination. The new CDC guidance has encouraged some such infected vacationers to ride out their on-island isolation period and then salvage the remainder of their trip, rather than just returning home.”

“The majority of our visitors do not have the funds to spend an extra two weeks during the holidays and so, for those visitors, they are happy that the CDC has changed the rules,” she told local KITV4 News.

Hawaii Set To Welcome Back Travelers On Nov. 1

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After seeing a considerable drop in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations, Hawaii’s governor David Ige said on Twitter that the state plans to reopen to both essential and non-essential travelers (regardless of vaccination status) starting on Nov. 1.

“I’m encouraged by the continuing trend of lower case counts of COVID in our islands. Our hospitals are doing better and seeing fewer patients. This gives us the ability to move forward in our economic recovery and safely welcome back fully vaccinated domestic travelers.”

Due to Hawaii’s “Safe Travels” program (which will continue to remain in effect), non-vaccinated travelers will be required to test negative for COVID-19 within 72 hours of their departure time to Hawaii, or be subjected to a 10-day mandatory quarantine. Visitors will also have to have to go through temperature screening upon arrival.

Ige stated that Hawaii is continuing to see information from the federal government about international travels plans, and that an appropriate plan will be in place prior to Nov. 8. Ige also assured Hawaii will continue to monitor case counts and hospitalizations, and will make adjustments when necessary while also prioritizing the safety and wellbeing of its residents.

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Hawaiian Airlines has also stated that it’s important for Hawaii to match its travel policies with federal rules on internal travel in order to avoid confusion while erasing further screenings and testings.

According to John Hopkins University, Hawaii has recorded 82,730 COVID-19 cases and 876 deaths. The state saw a spike in late August, when it had a seven-day average of 921 cases and five deaths. Due to the uptick, Ige asked travelers on Aug. 23 to stay away.

Hawaii local news station KHON noted that Ige’s request for non-essential travelers to stop entering the state was just that – no enforcements were made to travel rules. However, visitors listened, and the impact it had was very visible.

Hawaii’s stoppage of non-essential travelers sent shockwaves throughout the Hawaii tourism industry. At one point, Maui County saw up to 52,000 room cancellations and a loss of around $25.2 million. Hotel occupancy, which is typically around 50 to 60% in September, dropped to 30%.

“Since the governor’s request for nonessential travel to halt, the industry has seen cancellations increase and occupancy cut nearly in half in some instances,” Hawaii Lodging and Tourism Association President and CEO Mufi Hannemann stated at the time. “Some hotels have been forced to offer discounts in order to keep operating, and all of this taking place during our normal slow season.”

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Businesses also had to pull back job offers and experienced layoffs due to the lack of visitor activity. When it was all said and done, the industry lost millions of dollars in economic revenue. Now, tourism leaders will hope to recoup those losses once the visitor numbers start to inch back up.

It remains to be seen whether businesses and hotels will be ready for the reopening in two weeks. However, while Hannemann said that there could be challenges — such as large gatherings — he would rather face a problem like this than what they had to go through in September and October.

Currently, Hawaii has a seven-day average of 124 cases and three deaths. Hawaii also possesses close to a 70% vaccination rating. As USA Today notes, most of Hawaii’s visitors during the pandemic have come from the other 49 states due to other countries continuing to have rigid travel restrictions.

Tourism plays a major role in Hawaii’s economy – in 2019, visitor spending added up to $17.75 billion, and tourism supported 216,000 jobs. In August 2021, Hawaii saw 211,269 total visitors. That’s greatly up from August 2020’s total of 22,625 visitors, but still down from August 2019’s 252,916 visitors.

Maui Set To Impose New Hotel Tax Due To Influx Of Tourists 

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The Hawaiian island of Maui has announced that they will now be collecting a hotel tax from all tourists staying there in order to help them deal with the influx of tourists while recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic. 

The new 3% tax will be collected from all individuals staying at a hotel or short-term rental on the island. According to the Associated Press, this tax comes after lawmakers in the state passed a bill that would change how Hawaii allocated tax revenue to the different counties. 

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Before this new tax was implemented, the state would collect a 10% hotel tax to be distributed to each county. According to Hawaii News Now, the bill is also cutting Hawaii Tourism Authority’s budget by 24%. Maui County Council Chair Alice Lee told the media outlet that this change would help the tourism industry in Hawaii thrive overall as the world begins to reopen more. 

“This tax will help tremendously. Instead of $23 million, we’ll probably receive in the neighborhood of $50 to $70 million,” she explained. 

The push for Hawaii’s tourism sector to find new ways to gain more revenue comes as a major increase in travel, and travel plans, have emerged, especially in Maui. Maui’s Mayor Michael Victorino has reached out to certain airlines to start bringing fewer tourists to the island, as they are starting to become overwhelmed with wealthy travelers who want to escape. 

“We don’t have the authority to say stop, but we are asking the powers to be to help us,” Victorino said to the AP.

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In May 2021, more than 630,000 visitors flew to Maui. In May 2019, before the pandemic, Maui received about 847,000 tourists, so the state is currently witnessing almost pre-pandemic levels of travel while the US is still very much battling this virus and its variants. 

Maui is also one of the easiest places to travel to currently, especially for American citizens. Last week the state removed their requirement for travelers to be tested for Covid-19 before coming to the island; this stipulation only exists for fully vaccinated domestic travelers. 

Those who are not vaccinated still have to provide proof of a negative test from a “trusted medical partner site” in order to skip the mandatory quarantine period once they get to the island itself. 

Hawaii has also recently expanded their partnership with the company Clear’s Health Pass, which offers vaccinated individuals with an easy and digital way of proving their vaccination status to make travel easy. 

Governor David Ige also announced that the state plans to lift all of its Covid-19 restrictions once Hawaii reaches a 70% vaccination rate. Currently 65% of all residents have received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, and 58% are fully vaccinated. 

Hawaiian Airlines

Hawaii Updated Covid-19 Travel Restrictions

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Hawaii is one of the most popular destinations that people want to fly to once the Covid-19 pandemic improves, here’s how the island’s are preparing.

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