Question: My wife and I arrived in Honolulu last month to begin our six-month winter stay away from the freezing temperatures in New York. On Sunday, Oct. 12, we went to Ala Moana Park to spend the day with friends and were shocked to see the number of dogs in violation of the "no animal" ordinance: 37 on Magic Island alone and another 14 throughout the rest of the park. Many were off leash, and some small packs were running around everywhere. Why is there no enforcement by parks personnel or police to curb this desecration of a beautiful park? Barefoot children are playing in the same space the dogs evacuate on, and most owners do not carry scoops or bags to clean up after them. Exposing nonowners to disease and possible bites is intolerable. The city must begin an enforcement program.
Answer: People taking dogs to Ala Moana Beach Park is a long-standing problem, but on Oct. 12 there was a reason most of them were there: the annual Hawaiian Humane Society Pet Walk fundraiser.
It’s the one day a year that the city Department of Parks and Recreation grants an exemption to the ban on dogs at Ala Moana, said Director Michele Nekota.
However, owners were required to keep their dogs on a leash, and beach access for the dogs was restricted.
Participants were made aware of the rules when registering for the event, and the Humane Society assisted in enforcing the rules during the event, Nekota said.
While there was a reason for the large number of dogs at the park on Oct. 12, she acknowledged that "individuals do sometimes break the rules and bring their dogs into the park."
Parks staff who see dogs will inform the owners that dogs are not allowed in the park, and most owners comply, she said.
If a dog owner refuses, the staff will contact HPD, which "routinely issues citations to violators," Nekota said.
Anyone witnessing dogs at Ala Moana Beach Park is asked to inform the parks staff or call police at 911.
Meanwhile, dog owners can find a list of off-leash dog parks on Oahu, as well as "dog-friendly" parks, where dogs on leashes are allowed, on the Hawaiian Humane Society website: hawaiianhumane.org/dog-friendly-parks.html.
Question: HMSA for 2015 has a new tier for generic drugs called "non-preferred generic." We’ve called HMSA and can’t get a clear answer. They just said nonpreferred is a higher tier. We thought a generic drug was a generic drug. Is nonpreferred generic not as safe as a generic drug? I talked with our pharmacist and he has no idea. Can someone explain the difference?
Answer: It’s a matter of cost.
A nonpreferred generic drug simply is one with a higher co-pay, explained Elisa Yadao, HMSA’s senior vice president of consumer experience.
"There’s no difference in safety between the two tiers," she said.
Yadao said the decision to split generic drugs into two tiers was in response to more generic drugs becoming available, some at a higher cost.
"The separate tiers help us avoid raising the cost of all generic drugs and was necessary to help us sustain our Akamai Advantage plans for Medicare members," she said.
Auwe and Mahalo
Auwe to the thoughtless person who shot the eye of Binkey, a skinny black cat, in the Halawa industrial area sometime in October. Your cruelty and ignorance caused many individuals concern and money. Think before you hurt other harmless animals. Mahalo to all those who cared and helped: John, a kind businessman who cares for this feral cat and others that live on his property, making sure they are all spayed or neutered and microchipped; Dr. Chen at VCA Waimalu, who treated and supervised the operation for Binkey; Dr. Jodi, an understanding vet from California, who was visiting her family in Hawaii, for providing advice on his care; and two wonderful individuals, Dee and Dave, who took Binkey into their home (because of his blindness, Binkey can no longer live outdoors). – FL
Write to “Kokua Line” at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
