Department of Health

Hawaiʻi can address substance abuse with $33 million from opioid manufacturer settlements — and that number is expected to continue to grow. HPR's Ashley Mizuo explains how managing and spending the funds has been a work in progress.

The newest dashboard of Respiratory Disease Activity shows COVID-19 is at the yellow level — or “medium activity.”

It's been 20 years since Dr. Jack Lewin has held the post of Hawaiʻi health director. Lewin has returned home to Hawaiʻi with a mission to help overhaul health care.

More than 100 million gallons of fuel have been drained from the Navy Red Hill underground fuel facility, but residual fumes could still pose a risk to workers and neighboring communities. Kathleen Ho, the deputy environmental director for the state Department of Health, said health officials raised those concerns with the Navy.

Local health officials say testing on West Maui residents shows no evidence of widespread lead exposure from last summer’s wildfires.

The Navy wants to reduce how much water is being discharged into Hālawa Stream, but the Hawaiʻi Department of Health is concerned about the lack of monitoring proposed in its plan.

The state Department of Health is seeking proposals for emergency medical services to operate ground ambulance services for Maui and Kauaʻi counties.

There’s good news for the health of coastal waters off Lahaina. HPR’s Catherine Cluett Pactol reports on reassuring results from water quality testing after the fires.

The state Department of Health is investigating two confirmed cases and eight probable cases of pertussis, better known as whooping cough, on Hawaiʻi Island. The Conversation’s Maddie Bender spoke to Deputy State Epidemiologist Nathan Tan this morning to learn more about the cases.

The Conversation talked to Caroline Pratt, the state Department of Health’s Disease Investigations Branch chief, about the updated guidance not just for COVID-19 but for all respiratory diseases in our community.