Question: What if I wanted to keep the digital vaccine card?
Answer: You are referring to the Hawaii SMART Health Card, which serves as digital proof of COVID- 19 vaccination for people vaccinated in Hawaii whose records could be auto-verified by the state’s online system. The SMART card application resides on the Hawaii Safe Travels website, which is shutting down next week, taking the SMART card app with it.
Since you submitted this question, the state has emailed people registered with Safe Travels about the upcoming changes. The notification email includes instructions for SMART card holders who want to keep a copy of the digital vaccine card for possible future use. So, check your email for details, but to sum up, you should be able to save the SMART card’s QR code as a screenshot on your mobile device or you can print out a hard copy. Or, if you use Apple Wallet, Samsung Pay or the CommonHealth app, you should be able to store it there, the state says.
“If saved, the QR code will still have the ability to show the verified information when scanned by the verifier app,” the email says.
The Hawaii Safe Travels program will end at 11:59 p.m. March 25 and its digital platform (at travel.hawaii.gov) will not be accessible after 2 a.m. March 26, the state says.
Q: Where are the results of the red-light studies?
A: None had been posted as of Wednesday. On Feb. 1, the state Department of Transportation said engineering studies to determine whether to install red-light cameras at certain Oahu intersections began in January, should wrap up in March and would be posted on the DOT website as they were completed.
Q: My husband applied for a state ID in January and still has not received the card. Who can he call to find out what is going on?
A: On Oahu, call 808-768-9100 to check the status of a state identification card or permanent plastic driver’s license that has not been delivered.
Q: Does the state know how many people got COVID-19 boosters? It’s no good to be complacent.
A: The state keeps track of third doses, which may be booster shots for the general population or additional doses of primary vaccine for immunocompromised individuals. As of Tuesday, 55.2% of Hawaii’s eligible population had received a booster or third dose, according to the state Department of Health’s COVID-19 vaccine summary. By contrast, 81.9% of Hawaii’s eligible population had completed their primary COVID-19 series.
Mahalo
At about 4:15 p.m. Sunday, we were leaving a flag football game and heading to pick up pizza. A person in the car next to us was honking and pointing at our red Nissan pickup. I rolled down the window and he said that something had fallen off our truck. It was a bag with a phone, billfold, driver’s license, money, etc. This wonderful man helped us to avoid a really bad day. We retraced our drive and found the bag still on the side of the road. May God bless this wonderful person. — The Chuns
Mahalo
Mahalo to my unknown friend and to the Honolulu Police Department. I was assaulted by an obviously deranged male through my car window at the McDonald’s drive-thru on Dillingham Boulevard at 11:37 a.m. Monday. To the public, especially senior citizens: Please keep windows up while not in motion.
This happened in an instant. If my window had been up he probably couldn’t have assaulted me. To my unknown new friend, who stepped in when he didn’t have to and pushed the assailant away, allowing me to get out of my car: a big mahalo! You left before I could thank you properly. Also a big mahalo to HPD. Officer Decosta was there quickly and HPD apprehended the suspect. — Thanks, Ed
Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Suite 7-500, Honolulu, HI 96813; call 808-529-4773; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
