Kokua Line: Applicants using 26 email service providers can’t reset passwords for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance

Question: What is going on with the PUA website? I can’t get in.

Answer: The new Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program had trouble communicating with applicants who used email addresses provided by Yahoo, AOL, Netscape, Verizon and 22 other email service providers, according to a notice at lbr.force.com/Unemployment/s.

“We are currently experiencing an issue with emails not being received. We are working to resolve this issue,” said the notice, which apparently was posted Friday and remained up Tuesday afternoon. The notice will be updated when the problem is resolved, it said.

The notice links to a list of email services whose users were “experiencing log-in issues” at pua.hawaii.gov, primarily related to requests to reset passwords. If your email service is on the list, wait for the problem to be resolved before trying again to reset your password, the notice said.

Q: I know public school is winding down, but I am wondering about the time when students were supposed to be learning at home. My neighbor’s children and their friends are outside playing all day every day, well into the night. I am sure it has been an enjoyable, exciting time for them, but it has been difficult for adults nearby who are trying to work from home. These children are very loud. They never seem to be inside doing schoolwork. Is there a certain number of hours of day that they were required to do so?

A: No, the state Department of Education has not imposed a standard daily time requirement for schoolwork since public school facilities closed to students in mid-March, due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. The 2019-20 DOE school year officially ends for students on May 28.

DOE officials have said that each school adapted according to the needs of its community. Teachers replaced in-person classroom instruction with a mix of enrichment instruction and activities, which varied by the student’s age and access to technological tools, such as laptop computers and high-speed internet.

Depending on the school, the enrichment involved such things as independent projects, study packets, distance learning and e-conferences. Although there were not mandatory hours set for students to devote to the work, teachers did set expectations and timelines to keep students engaged academically despite the dis­ruptions, DOE officials have said.

Mahalo

Maui Health wants to acknowledge and express our heartfelt gratitude for the generosity and leadership of Mufi Hannemann and the Hawaii Lodging and Tourism Association, Hawaii Tourism Authority, Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau, and Haley Hsieh of Laulima Data Alliance for the Hotels for Heroes program. This program offered our clinical staff from our Maui Health hospitals lodging after long shifts spent tending to patients during the height of the COVID pandemic. So many of our caregivers live in multigenerational households, and the thought of endangering their beloved family members added stress to an already stressful situation. In addition, thank you to the Maui hotels that took part in this endeavor: Maui Beach Hotel, Maui Coast Hotel, Ka‘anapali Beach Resort, Napili Kai Beach Resort and Montage Kapalua Bay. Your kindness and willingness to house our caregivers and offer them a brief respite proved invaluable in helping them restore their spirits. We may not be out of the woods yet with this pandemic, but thanks to the good-hearted people of the organizations mentioned, our doctors, nurses and other health care workers were offered a reprieve from the unrelenting worries this virus has instilled in everyone. — Michael A. Rembis, chief executive officer, Maui Health

Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.