In The News
Sen. Mazie Hirono wants to shore up aging military infrastructure
by Kevin Knodell
U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono questioned a panel of experts about military infrastructure in the Pacific during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing Wednesday. The Pentagon is looking to beef up its military presence in the Pacific, and recently signed new basing agreements with Japan and the Philippines as regional tensions simmer with China amid disputes over territorial and navigation rights. But for years, even as the Pentagon has spent billions on new high-tech weapons systems, the faci… Continue Reading
February 02, 2023
Senators ask mifepristone manufacturer to list miscarriage as a use for abortion pill
by Jennifer Gerson
Three Democratic senators sent a letter Thursday urging a drug company to add miscarriage as a use for the drug mifepristone. Currently, the label only indicates mifepristone for use in medication abortion, though the drug can be safely — and legally — used in miscarriage management in the first trimester.Sens. Mazie Hirono of Hawaii, Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts sent a letter to Danco Laboratories, one of the manufacturers of mifepristone, urging th… Continue Reading
January 30, 2023
Elderly would receive more care, remain in community with bill backed by Hirono
by Maui Now Staff
Hawai'i's U.S. Sen. Mazie K. Hirono joined colleagues in introducing a bill that would expand access to longterm care, enabling older adults and people with disabilities to receive quality care while remaining in their communities. The Better Care Better Jobs Act would enhance Medicare funding for home care, helping many of the 650,000-plus people on waiting lists nationally receive care in the setting of their choice, according to a news release. Millions rely on Medicaid home and community-… Continue Reading
January 28, 2023
Sen. Mazie Hirono pushes Navy on Red Hill facility reforms
by Kevin Knodell
A year after the U.S. Pacific Fleet completed its investigation into two jet fuel spills in 2021 at the underground Red Hill fuel storage facility that led to the contamination of the Navy's Oahu water system, U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono is pressing the service to provide answers on what's changed. In a letter this week to Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro, Hirono wrote that "more than a year later, the Navy's ongoing response to these releases continues to raise serious concerns about its ability to t… Continue Reading
January 19, 2023
Hirono tours UH West Oahu creative media facility, organic garden, more
by UH News
U.S. Sen. Mazie K. Hirono visited the University of Hawaii-West Oahu on January 12, and spoke with students, alumni, faculty, staff and administrators about initiatives in sustainable food and agriculture, food security, digital media, labor education and research, and more. As part of her visit, Hirono toured Hale Kuahuokala and the Student Organic Garden, 'Ulu'ulu: The Henry Ku'ualoha Giugni Moving Image Archive of Hawaii, and the new Academy for Creative Media (ACM) Student Production Center… Continue Reading
October 27, 2022
Federal grant with private match to bolster new Honolulu container terminal project
by Andrew Gomes
A new state-owned ocean cargo container terminal being built at Honolulu Harbor is slated to receive extra bells and whistles valued at $139 million thanks to a federal grant requiring private matching funds. The U.S. Department of Transportation's Maritime Administration awarded a $47.3 million grant to bolster development of the Hawaii Department of Transportation's Kapalama Container Terminal project, according to U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono. Hirono, in announcing the MARAD Port Infrastructure D… Continue Reading
October 26, 2022
Hawaii receives $1.37M to fight coffee leaf rust
by Michael Tsai
Federal help is on the way for local farmers battling the effects of coffee leaf rust, a destructive fungus that could potentially jeopardize the state's $500,000 coffee industry. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded $1.37 million to the Hawaii Agriculture Research Center to address CLR, U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, announced last week. The funding comes from NIFA's Specialty Crop Research Initiatives program and will be used to reboot th… Continue Reading
October 17, 2022
UH-Manoa and UH-Maui College receive $1.9M to boost agricultural sciences
by The Maui News Staff
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded $1.9 million in federal funding to programs at the University of Hawaii at Manoa and the University of Hawaii Maui College to boost Alaska Native-Serving and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions, U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono announced. The funding will provide financial support for these institutions to carry out education, applied research, and community development programs within a broadly defined arena o… Continue Reading
October 14, 2022
$1.28M secured for UH to train community health workers
by Maui Now Staff
The US Department of Health and Human Services awarded $1.28 million in federal funding to the University of Hawai?i Systems to train new community health workers. The funding is part of the Community Health Worker Training Program created by the American Rescue Plan, which US Senator Mazie Hirono helped pass last year. Currently, there are more than 2,000 community health workers operating through several organizations throughout Hawai?i. "As we work to combat our health care worker shortage … Continue Reading
October 10, 2022
Hirono attends discussion on kupuna issues
by The Garden Island Staff
U.S. Sen. Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) recently met with the Kupuna Collective, a network of support organizations that focus on maximizing the health, independence and engagement of Hawai'i's older adults, for a roundtable conversation about supporting seniors in Hawai'i. During the roundtable, Hirono discussed issues including food security, senior care workforce shortages, and the recently assed Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which will lower health-care costs for the nearly 280,000 seniors in Haw… Continue Reading
October 06, 2022
Veterans Affairs secretary says staff shortages are being addressed to better serve Hawaii’s veterans
by Kevin Knodell
The head of the Department of Veterans Affairs testified on Oahu Wednesday about the state of health services in Hawaii and issues including staff shortages, women's care and complaints from community clinic providers about payments. Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough appeared at a congressional field hearing chaired by U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono at the Oahu Veterans Center. Hawaii is home to an estimated 100,000 veterans spread across Oahu and 30,000 veterans on the neighbor islands. All … Continue Reading
October 04, 2022
Harbor cargo capacity expansion slated for 2024 completion
by Andrew Gomes
A new ocean cargo container terminal at Honolulu Harbor long deemed a crucial state project supporting economic growth is on track for completion in early 2024 after nearly two decades of work that has included major delays. The $526 million project on 84 acres of state land that was once an Army shipping and warehouse base known as Kapalama Military Reservation is expected to expand container handling capacity by 40% at the state's largest commercial port to address overcrowding and improve ef… Continue Reading
October 03, 2022
U.S. Senate passes bill limiting NDAs
by Michael Tsai
The U.S. Senate voted unanimously last week to pass a bill that would limit non-disclosure and non-disparagement agreements in cases involving sexual harassment or sexual assault. "NDAs have been weaponized by employers, corporations and others in power to cover up abuse and sexual misconduct," said Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, who co-sponsored the legislation with Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and Lindsey Graham, R.-S.C. "The Speak Out Act empowers survivors to … Continue Reading
October 02, 2022
Hirono says proposed bill for Women's Business Centers would 'support our small, local businesses'
by George Willis
U.S. Sen. Mazie K. Hirono joined a group of Democratic colleagues to introduce the Women's Business Centers Improvement Act of 2022, aiming to improve the U.S. Small Business Administration/s Women's Business Center Program. "As our economy continues to recover from the pandemic, supply chain issues and labor shortages, it is important that we do everything we can to support our small, local businesses," Hirono said in a release from her office. "This bill will increase access to crucial resour… Continue Reading
October 02, 2022
50th anniversary of Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge marked
by The Garden Island Staff
Sen. Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, introduced a resolution recognizing the 50th anniversaries of the establishment of Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge and Pearl Harbor National Wildlife Refuge on O'ahu. The resolution, cosponsored by Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI), celebrates the two refuges while acknowledging the wonders of Hawai'i's eight other national wildlife refuges. The resolution also encourages people in Hawai'i and across the country… Continue Reading
September 26, 2022
Hirono champions bill to fight veteran suicide
by The Garden Island Staff
U.S. Sen. Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), a member of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, announced that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs awarded $1.5 million in federal funding to Hawai'i to support veterans' suicide-prevention efforts. The funding is made possible through the Commander John Scott Hannon Veterans Mental Health Care Improvement Act of 2019, a bill Hirono cosponsored, and will go to multiple organizations in Hawai'i, including Blue Star Families, Catholic Charities Hawai'i an… Continue Reading
September 24, 2022
Following Hirono-led push, DOJ Confirms VA’s legal Authority to provide abortion care
by Maui Now Staff
The US Department of Justice confirmed in a legal opinion that the VA has the legal authority to provide abortion services in cases of rape, incest, and the life or health of the patient. Additionally, DOJ concluded that VA doctors and health care providers who perform abortion services are protected from prosecution, including in states that have outlawed abortion in the wake of the Supreme Court's disastrous Dobbs decision overturning Roe v. Wade. This comes following a push led by US Senato… Continue Reading
September 22, 2022
VA Secretary: We Decide, Not State AGs, If Vets Can Access Abortion In States With Bans
by Jennifer Bendery
Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough is making it clear who has the final say in deciding whether veterans in states with abortion bans can still access abortion care. He does, not Republican state attorneys general. During a Wednesday hearing before the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) praised McDonough for changing VA rules this month, for the first time, to provide abortion care to veterans in cases involving rape, incest or when the life of the … Continue Reading
September 22, 2022
Senators urge better care for veterans
by Grant Phillips
Hawaii County has two community outpatient clinics for veterans and two vet centers, meaning veterans on the island often have to travel, schedule a telehealth visit, or seek a community care provider to access treatment in a timely manner. Additional complications come from the impact of COVID-19, issues with Veterans Affairs infrastructure, the slow handling of referrals, and an overall shortage of health care workers. As a result, veterans nationwide are forced to endure long wait times for… Continue Reading
September 22, 2022
VA Doctors Have Legal Protection To Perform Abortions, Secretary Says
by Nick Grube
Doctors and nurses who perform abortions for the Department of Veterans Affairs in states where the practice is banned should be immune from criminal prosecution and other civil penalties, such as license revocation, according to a legal opinion VA Secretary Denis McDonough said he received from the U.S Justice Department. McDonough testified before the Senate Veteran Affairs Committee on Tuesday about a new rule that allows the VA to provide abortion services to veterans and other beneficiarie… Continue Reading
