The economic implications of a declining population include a shrinking labor pool and reduced household consumption and spending, hampering economic growth, according to Chief State Economist Eugene Tian. Read more
Tim Brown, East-West Center infectious disease expert, joined the Honolulu Star-Advertiser’s “Spotlight Hawaii” livestream show today and answered viewer questions. Read more
The state’s seven-day average of new COVID-19 cases, meanwhile, was reported at 122 a day, nearly double the 66 a day reported on March 22. Read more
State lawmakers passed a law in 2011 requiring the reports amid heightened concerns nationally about the toll infections were having on patients. Read more
At the worst point of the pandemic it was possible to walk down Kalakaua Avenue — the 50-yard line of the state’s tourism economy — without encountering cars or people. It was so quiet that wild chickens wandered freely through the neighborhood. Read more
Hawaii students proficient in math had been at 43% in the last year of testing before the pandemic started, plummeting to 32% during the worst of the pandemic, then rising to 38% in the 2021-2022 school year. Read more
The Hawaii Department of Health got a financial boost for the work it does in the wake of dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more
A city program to award $10 million in federal COVID- 19 relief funds to Oahu small businesses that suffered economic losses during the pandemic has garnered hundreds of applicants. Read more
The state’s average positivity rate was at 5.2% compared with 4.2% the previous week. Read more
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The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention aims to become more nimble as a result of lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more
March 15 marked the three-year anniversary of “15 Days to Slow the Spread” of the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more
At Kaiser Permanente Moanalua Medical Center we recently held a ceremony to commemorate the third anniversary of the start of our COVID-19 experience in Hawaii. Read more
Three years on since the COVID-19 pandemic hit Hawaii shores, many have resumed living without restrictions, but the state is still reeling from its impacts — and residents are still dying from the disease. Read more
The state’s seven-day average of new COVID-19 cases was reported at 74 per day. Read more
Hawaiian Airlines in 2022 wasn’t even back to pre-COVID-19 performance levels and still was associated directly and indirectly with more than $10 billion worth of economic activity in Hawaii — 11% of the state’s gross domestic product, according to an independent report by ICF, a global consulting services company commissioned by the airline to assess its economic impact in Hawaii. Read more
Seven more deaths were also reported, bringing the state’s coronavirus-related death toll to 1,841. Read more
A man accused of being part of a California-to-Hawaii island fentanyl marketing operation that sold the drug for $400 a gram had his detention hearing delayed Tuesday after he tested positive for COVID-19. Read more
The Honolulu Festival returns to Oahu next weekend after a three-year pandemic-related hiatus, creating an opportunity to help normalize travel to Hawaii again for Japanese visitors whose return has lagged travelers’ from other destinations. Read more
Few public places or businesses require masking any more in Hawaii due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but most major hospitals and health care settings still do. Read more
The Health Department did not provide case counts or metrics last Wednesday but officials said counts from the previous week would be included in today’s update, with no gap in data. Read more
When the COVID-19 pandemic swept across the globe in 2020, Hawaii’s enrollment in Medicaid, the public safety-net health insurance program, jumped significantly, spurred by widespread unemployment. In March 2020, the federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act protected this access to health care, essentially pausing requirements for reenrollment verification and paperwork. Read more
