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Larry Geller is project director of the GreenWheel Food Hub, past president and board member of the Kokua Council and secretary/treasurer for the Hawaii Coalition for Health.
Q: The Supreme Court did not compel the state to hire more contact tracers, despite the Kokua Council’s petition. How do you assess the state’s contact tracing efforts at this point?
A: In a word: “inadequate.” It’s uncertain whether to trust the numbers we have been given. Current information is that there are 300 contact tracers at work. However, one of the governor’s proclamations requires that “All persons shall comply with applicable guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).” According to the CDC/Washington University, the state should have 653 active tracers.
That proclamation — and the contradictory but so-much-lower numbers widely reported, together with the state’s apparent inability to cure the deficiency — was the basis of Kokua Council’s petition to the Supreme Court.
After our petition was denied the AG did send Kokua Council a letter with detailed information. The numbers were still far short of the CDC guidance. We also lack reports on how many contacts were traced each week.
It’s easy to become complacent as community spread decreases during a lockdown.
Are there any solutions to the care-home/nursing-home COVID-19 crisis that should be pursued?
Given the clear and demonstrated threat to the lives of kupuna and others in these facilities, the Department of Health should double-down on its efforts to ensure that infection control practices are carefully adhered to.
We’re still in the dark about whether DOH is providing adequate guidance to care homes and nursing homes, whether they are consistently following up aggressively with unannounced inspections, and whether violations discovered are removed.
Even in the widely-publicized case of the Yukio Okutsu State Veterans Home reports were cited of inspections conducted by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency (HI-EMA) but DOH inspections conducted Sept. 9, 10 and 14 are still not posted on their website or on the federal CMS website.
Additionally, the operator of the facility lamented, “In every other state in which we operate, the state Department of Health has offered support, guidance, collaboration, PPE, testing, etc., to our facilities” — an allegation that the Hawaii DOH had not done so.
What are your chief worries about the long-term effects of the pandemic on the economy?
I think the biggest threat will be the expiration of assistance to those still jobless at the end of 2020. Unemployment benefits are time-limited. Many who have received the sometimes minimal UI (unemployment insurance) payments thus far will no longer receive anything.
Even though the economy is adding back jobs every month, large-scale layoffs are still occurring and thousands of jobs will not return any time soon. Nor will jobs miraculously appear even if tourism revives somewhat and we avoid a winter virus wave with resulting lockdowns. Thousands of people will be struggling even more to pay the bills.
Not only will rents and mortgages go unpaid, but unless support is provided to the thousands or tens of thousands with no income, families will require increased food assistance.
The effects if large numbers of people are without assistance will, not just could, crash the state’s economy.
What do you think would help Hawaii overcome its most persistent problems?
Activists and organizations must move from engagement only at a micro level to include macro-level interventions if the community is to make a difference in reforming state and local government.
As an example, services to the homeless, including providing meals, social services, even shelter, are absolutely necessary. Yet social workers can assist people every day without relieving the systemic problems that result in homelessness. They are working on the “micro” level, and it is essential work, but a different approach is needed in addition.
The “macro” level would be to work to achieve necessary growth in affordable housing in order to implement “Housing First.” Homelessness is the result of the lack of homes. Honolulu has embraced gentrification, as have other large American cities. The result, as one example, is that Kakaako has luxury towers for the rich and ultra-rich instead of badly needed workforce housing.
Thousands of truly affordable housing units are required, yet virtually none are planned or delivered. If the community would shift to work on the “macro” level, all of us would benefit.
What are the concerns for seniors that you would see as top priority?
The pandemic presents the most compelling concern: safety from the coronavirus.
Seniors live at home, alone or with family, in care homes and in skilled nursing facilities or nursing homes. Regardless of setting, they are the most vulnerable to infection and death. The safety of those living in close quarters such as nursing homes depends on state agency vigilance. Many are also unfamiliar with the technology needed to connect with services such as meal or food delivery. They may not have smart phones.
It’s gratifying to see how the community has extended outreach to our kupuna. If we check in with older neighbors or volunteer where possible, needs will be met.
Which brings us back to safety. So wear that mask, keep social distancing, and follow recommendations for gatherings and recreation. My concern is that over time people will become lax in following the rules.
The bio file
>> Current titles: Project director, GreenWheel Food Hub; past president and board member, Kokua Council; secretary/treasurer, Hawaii Coalition for Health.
>> Professional history: Worked 17 years in Japan with General Electric; senior vice president and director of a joint venture between GE and NEC Corp. In Hawaii, case manager for special needs students; special guardian ad litem; mediator; commissioner on State Rehabilitation Council.
>> Education: Bachelor of science, electrical engineering, with honors, Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn; additional graduate work in sociology, University of Hawaii-Manoa.
>> Personal: Lover of Japanese art, food, culture; podcast addict; compulsive kitchen organizer; gadget addict; presenter of Democracy Now! on ‘Olelo.
>> One more thing: Please support our local farmers — buy fresh, healthy produce at farmers markets. Stop by and say hi at the SNAP booth at Blaisdell Concert Hall, Wednesdays, 4-7 p.m. Check with kupuna neighbors and see if they need something you can help with.
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