News
Remembering Dr. Elizabeth “Liz” Tam
Dr. Tam is a very dear friend and colleague, who was the only academic professor that promoted community participatory research (VOG project), hiring research assistants from within the community. Her contributions are many and I would like to share with our community how much she means to us.Mahalo,auntie Jessie

MAYOR ROTH LIFTS ALL COUNTY COVID RESTRICTIONS
From: Johnasen, Cyrus
Sent: Monday, February 28, 2022 2:50 PM
Subject: MAYOR ROTH LIFTS ALL COUNTY COVID RESTRICTIONS
Aloha!
Mayor Mitch Roth announces the termination of Hawaiʻi County’s Thirteenth Supplementary Emergency Proclamation, declaring an end to all County emergency rules related to COVID-19. As a result, effective immediately, there will no longer be a limit on gathering sizes (indoor and outdoor), which ultimately removes the County’s coveted mechanism for ‘special gatherings’ review and approval. However, residents must still adhere to the Governor’s Emergency Proclamation Related to COVID-19 (Omicron Variant), which includes indoor mask-wearing, Safe Travels requirements, and testing/vaccination requirements for County and State employees. The Governor’s emergency order will remain in effect until March 25 unless otherwise acted upon. It is unclear if the Governor will extend his emergency rules beyond then.
Please see the attached release for more information. I’ve also attached a copy of the rescinded rule and termination of proclamation for your review.
Additionally, please see Mayor Roth’s recorded announcement here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gWtsDsk_kM
Mahalo,
Cyrus Johnasen
Public Relations
County of Hawaiʻi
Office of the Mayor
cyrus.johnasen@hawaiicounty.gov
808.345.9434
NRHA – National Rural Health Association NEWSLETTER (Feb 17, 2022)
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ISOLATION / QUARANTINE – RELEASE DATE CALCULATOR
Department of Health’s across the country now have this handy tool to help determine isolation/quarantine, when the isolation/quarantine ends, when you should test.
The Hawaii DOH has it on their website, and you can find it here: https://health.hawaii.gov/coronavirusdisease2019/release-calculator/.
With guidance changing frequently, let’s encourage our communities to use a reliable resource versus word of mouth based on an inaccurate social media post.
Have a wonderful weekend!!!
Be well,
Vanessa Carlson
Program Manager
Project Director-Kuleana Health
P.O. Box 7158
Hilo, Hawaii 96720
Work: 808.756.9637
Mobile: 808.936.7427
Email: vcarlson@communityfirsthawaii.org
Invitation to Participate in Survey on Health Messaging (Expires 28-Feb-2022)
- Assess the effectiveness of culturally appropriate promotional materials to increase community knowledge of and confidence in herpes zoster and pneumococcal vaccines among African American CHWs over the age of 50.
- Assess perceptions of risk, barriers, and motivations related to general uptake of adult vaccines, including the COVID-19 vaccine.
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Region-9-CHW-Survey.
Office of Regional Health Operations
CDC panel endorses COVID-19 vaccine boosters for all adults
BY NATHANIEL WEIXEL - 11/19/21 03:21 PM EST
- https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/582401-cdc-panel-endorses-covid-vaccine-boosters-for-all-adults?userid=109655
- https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/582401-cdc-panel-endorses-covid-vaccine-boosters-for-all-adults?jwsource=cl
A key outside advisory group to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has endorsed the use of COVID-19 booster shots for all adults, a one-size-fits-all approach designed to simplify eligibility.
If CDC Director Rochelle Walensky signs off on the broader use, as expected, the extra shots will be available immediately to all adults, as long as they are six months past the final dose of a Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, or two months after a Johnson & Johnson dose.
The recommendation from the panel comes just hours after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized both Pfizer and Moderna’s booster shots for everyone over the age of 18.
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Pfizer applied to the FDA earlier this month for an expansion of the emergency authorization for its booster shot to make it available to anyone 18 or older. Moderna announced just this week that it too had asked the FDA to allow its booster to be given to all adults.
Boosters for everyone has always been the Biden administration’s goal, but until now federal health authorities have stopped short of such a policy, and instead recommended boosters for only specific populations — those over age 65, anyone at high risk because of work or where they live, or those with an underlying medical condition.
The primary COVID-19 vaccination continues to provide good protection against severe disease and death, even as effectiveness against milder infection has waned. But cases have been steadily rising across the country, and authorities have said they want to stave off another winter surge.
The current recommendations, while fairly broad, have caused confusion. While people over the age of 65 are most at risk from waning vaccine immunity, fewer than 40 percent of them have received a booster, according to CDC data.
“The current guidelines, though well-intentioned and thoughtful, generate an obstacle to uptake of boosters. In pursuit of precision, they create confusion,” Nirav Shah, president of Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, told the panel.
The panel did not make a distinction in their recommendation between the two types of mRNA vaccines, despite the potential for increased risk of myocarditis — a type of heart inflammation — in young men after receiving Moderna’s vaccine.
CDC officials told the panel it’s too early to draw conclusions on the risk of myocarditis after the third dose of mRNA vaccines, because teens and younger adults haven’t yet been boosted in large enough numbers.
Several other countries have discouraged use of the Moderna vaccine in people younger than 30 because of that risk.