Low-income households throughout Hawaii receiving Med-QUEST, the state’s managed-care program for federally- and state-funded Medicaid benefits, won’t face “review and renewal” requirements, or potential disenrollment from their health insurance, until at least December. The pause in Med-QUEST reviews, announced by the state Department of Human Services (DHS) last week, is connected to the toll of the Maui fires — and Maui County residents receiving Med-QUEST won’t be subject to review until at least April, DHS announced.

That will ease the burden on hospitals and health-care providers who might otherwise be faced with unreimbursed costs from treating uninsured people — a good call in the wake of the deadly Lahaina disaster.