Members of military families who are experiencing long-term health problems that may be tied to last year’s fuel spill at Red Hill will have access to a new clinic at the start of the new year, according to the Defense Health Agency Region Indo-Pacific.

Patients can begin scheduling appointments on Dec. 27 by calling the TRICARE Nurse Advice Line at 800-874-2273 and requesting an appointment at the Red Hill Clinic, which will operate out of Naval Health Clinic Hawaii’s Branch Health Clinic – Makalapa, located on Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. Appointments are scheduled to begin on Jan. 3 and the clinic will remain open indefinitely.

The clinic will offer primary care appointments and expedited referrals to specialty care providers, according to the Defense Health Agency.

In November 2021, a fuel leak from the Navy’s Red Hill fuel facility contaminated the drinking water system serving Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and surrounding neighborhoods, sickening military families. Following the disaster, military officials said that the health impacts were expected to be temporary, resolving once families stopped drinking the contaminated water, which was causing nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, skin rashes and burns. But some of those affected have reported experiencing lingering health problems for months.

In order to attend the clinic, patients must be enrolled in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS), a database of military families and their dependents, as well as other defense employees who are entitled to TRICARE military health benefits.