Healthcare

This Saturday is National Take Back Day where people can anonymously drop off their unused or expired medication at different sites on Oʻahu, Maui, and Kauaʻi. Hawaiʻi does not allow syringes or needles at the drop offs, which has led health officials to encourage residents to learn how to safely dispose of their sharp objects themselves.

Lawmakers are considering a resolution that would study the communication needs of those who are deaf, hard of hearing, or deaf-blind in health care settings.

HMSA and Hawaiʻi Pacific Health have filed with the U.S. Department of Justice to integrate and create a new parent organization. The determination could be made soon but it will likely take much longer.

Health providers are reporting symptoms of staph, norovirus, and leptospirosis among residents and volunteers who are involved in flood cleanup.

At the end of last year, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began slashing the number of vaccines recommended for children. Because of this, the state Legislature is considering a measure that would preserve insurance coverage for preventative service recommendations before the changes were made.

HPR's Ashley Mizuo reports on what a proposed conveyance tax hike could fund; Sister Mary Nelle Gage recalls her work assisting with the adoption of thousands of Vietnamese children as part of Operation Babylift

The Senate Health and Homelessness Committee advanced a resolution that would reaffirm the state’s commitment to require hospitals to provide abortion care when it is necessary to stabilize the patient.

Many residents lost their medication in the floods and have yet to schedule prescription fillings, or have not had time or resources to go to the store, while others have infected cuts or gastroenteritis from ingesting contaminated water.

Recent power outages from this month's storms have sent ripples through the health care system. People who rely on in-home medical devices are especially vulnerable.

Five community health centers are asking for state support to finance new solar microgrids. HPR’s Savannah Harriman-Pote spoke to leaders at the centers about how this initiative would help them weather rising costs.