Ashley Mizuo

What’s at the top of educators’ holiday wishlist this school year? Reliable internet for their students.

COVID-19 testing sites are popping up all over Hawaii as the state increases its testing capacity. But can anyone get a test on demand and, if not, how is that decided?

Kauai and Maui are encouraging trans-Pacific travelers to take a free, second COVID-19 test a few days after they arrive on the islands. It’s as an extra precaution to stem the spread of the virus -- but few are taking up the offer.

Adrian Tam is the new state House representative for District 22 covering the Kakaako and Waikiki area.

He will make history as the only declared LGBTQ elected official in the state Legislature.

Tam says his main objective will be to diversify Hawaii’s economy away from just tourism, construction and military.

Beyond economic diversification, Tam wants to focus on public safety and homelessness.

He’s aware his election is noteworthy.

Travelers from Japan will be able to avoid the state’s 14-day quarantine with a negative COVID-19 test starting on November 6th.

A federal lawsuit against the city and Honolulu Police Department alleges an officer arrested a 15-year-old at school after the boy was in a fight with the officer’s son. The American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii says the case illustrates how some officers abuse their positions while the disciplinary actions taken by the police department are shrouded in secrecy. 

Maui and Kauai haven’t decided whether they will follow the lead of the Big Island and opt out of the state’s pre-travel testing program, leaving the 14-day quarantine in place.

About 18,000 Hawaii students attended this year’s public summer school. The programs were to especially help students who were disproportionately impacted by COVID-19.

The state Department of Health issued guidance for schools, both public and private, to transition to at least some in-person learning.

Mainland travelers may be able to avoid quarantine if they get a negative COVID-19 test before arriving in Hawaii starting October 15th. But some say the one-test plan is unsafe for Hawaii.

The state Department of Health has redesigned its contact tracing program with a new leader to adapt to the surge in COVID-19 cases. It's too soon to tell if the changes will be enough to contain the virus but the program will be closely watched.

Updated: 9/10/2020, 12:05 p.m.

Hawaii recorded three more COVID-19 deaths today and 169 cases of new infections. The latest daily counts bring the state death toll to 94 and the total number of cases to 10,292.

State Health Director Bruce Anderson and Public Safety Director Nolan Espinda will be retiring by the end of September. Both came under heavy criticism for what some saw as their inadequate response to the recent surge in COVID-19 cases statewide and in the prison system.

The state’s hospital industry says it’s facing a crisis and has appealed to the federal government to help it staff critically needed beds.

After mounting criticism, the state Department of health has scaled up its contact tracing efforts. It includes a streamlined process with new protocols in the contact tracing method.

As Hawaii struggles to control its soaring COVID-19 numbers, it might turn to Austin, Texas where researchers built a model to forecast how different actions can affect levels of infection in the area. It could give Hawaii insights into using hospital cases to determine when it’s time to lock down.

Hawaii public schools today begin a month of distance learning to kick off the new school year.

But for many students -- and some parents -- it will be back to campus to learn in person how to use online technology and meet the teachers.

The teachers’ union opposes that plan. It says it’s not safe to hold in-person training while COVID-19 cases are surging.

At Kauai High School, about half the students, several hundred of them, are expected on campus to attend all-day classes for one week.

The state Department of Health is working to increase contact tracing after Gov. David Ige put a new person in charge of the effort following mounting criticism of the program.

Some Hawaii hospitals are getting hit harder than others with the surge in COVID-19 cases. But the Healthcare Association of Hawaii that represents hospitals has a plan: it will re-distribute patients if needed so facilities aren’t overrun.