Question: With the demise of the Hawaii Health Connector, I was wondering how and from whom those of us who received our health insurance from Obamacare would get Health Insurance Marketplace IRS Form 1095-A for 2015. This form is needed in order to receive the subsidy for health insurance when filing your taxes. Last year the form was provided by the Health Connector.
Answer: The Hawaii Health Connector will provide IRS Form 1095-A: Health Insurance Marketplace Statement to households enrolled in health coverage through the Connector for 2015, said Cindy McMillan, communications director for Gov. David Ige. The 1095-A forms for 2015 will be mailed out sometime in January, she said. If you do not receive your form, or need to request a replacement form to file your 2015 income taxes, call 877-628-5076 or email support@hawaiihealthconnector.com.
Computer training
A recent query about computer training for senior citizens — 808ne.ws/1RfkReM — prompted a helpful response from Lou Torraca, president of The TUG (the-tug.org), a computer user group that welcomes new members, including novices.
“Computer user groups are everywhere in the USA and even internationally. The primary objective of user groups is to help each other with computer use,” he explained in an email. “Our members range from the novice user to the more experienced and our mantra is ‘there is no such thing as a dumb question.’ We have quite a few seniors (I’m 80).”
The group meets the first Saturday of every month from 10 a.m. to noon at the Oahu Veterans Center in Foster Village, 1298 Kukila St.
Prospective members are “most welcome” to attend a meeting to see whether they would like to join, he said. For those who do, annual dues are $20 and cover the cost of a monthly newsletter, door prizes and an annual contribution to the center for use of the meeting room, he said.
The group is “technologically ecumenical,” as Torraca put it, and includes PC users, Mac aficionados and even a couple of Linux folks among the membership.
Q: Did the City Council lift the ban against sparklers and fountains?
A: No. Bill 5 (2014) fizzled out last month when the Honolulu City Council deferred it. The measure would have amended Oahu law to add fountain-type fireworks to the firecrackers already permitted at New Year’s and Fourth of July celebrations. Both the Honolulu Police and Fire departments had opposed the measure, citing health and safety concerns.
Oahu’s current ordinance still stands, allowing adults to buy $25 permits at satellite city halls entitling them to buy up to 5,000 firecrackers per permit.
Q: Was the Trinidad and Tobago women’s soccer team even in town when the big match was canceled the night before it was supposed to be played Dec. 6?
A: Yes. The team practiced at Aloha Stadium for about 90 minutes Dec. 5, went sightseeing and had a light training session on the beach Dec. 6 (the day the match was scheduled to have been played) and departed Honolulu on Dec. 7, according to stories published at the time by TTFA Media, which is devoted to covering Trinidad and Tobago’s national soccer teams.
TTFA Media quoted Coach Randy Waldrum as saying that he and the team were disappointed that the match was canceled but understood why, given the condition of the playing surface and subsequent risk to the players.
Mahalo
A big mahalo to the young man who brought a package delivery that was incorrectly “delivered and left in garage” (according to UPS tracking). However, it was left at the wrong address. This young honest man made the effort to bring it to the correct address. We really appreciate what he did. Thank you so much. — Grateful
Write to “Kokua Line” at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
