04-28-2017, 05:31 AM
Basically the funding is going to department of health instead of UHH.
Budget chairwomen for the House and Senate allocated $1 million earlier this week to the state Department of Health to combat rat lungworm disease, but in doing so they diverted hundreds of thousands of dollars in hoped-for funding away from researchers at the University of Hawaii at Hilo who have been leading research into the disease and spearheading public education efforts.
"These are all important studies which would have been done with these funds,” said Jarvi [UHH lead Rat Lung researcher] by email. “We would like to know how the DOH will be spending our tax dollars and if they will be assisting the people of Hawaii island as well as Maui. Education is important but just telling people to wash their vegetables [DOH says they'll spend it on preventative education] is not going to solve this problem. We will continue to see an increase in cases and people’s lives ruined unless we better understand this disease, and that can only happen through research."
http://www.staradvertiser.com/2017/04/28...2b1338e3bc
It's recommended to contact the following reps. to make sure Puna's voice is heard and Department of Health (DOH) provides UHH funding now.
HOUSE FIN Chair
Sylvia Luke
House District 25
Hawaii State Capitol, Room 306
phone: 808-586-6200
repluke@capitol.hawaii.gov
Senate Ways and Means
Jill N. Tokuda
Senate District 24
Hawaii State Capitol, Room 207
phone: 808-587-7215
fax: 808-587-7220
sentokuda@capitol.hawaii.gov
In essence we want the money to go to fund UHH rat lung research.
Budget chairwomen for the House and Senate allocated $1 million earlier this week to the state Department of Health to combat rat lungworm disease, but in doing so they diverted hundreds of thousands of dollars in hoped-for funding away from researchers at the University of Hawaii at Hilo who have been leading research into the disease and spearheading public education efforts.
"These are all important studies which would have been done with these funds,” said Jarvi [UHH lead Rat Lung researcher] by email. “We would like to know how the DOH will be spending our tax dollars and if they will be assisting the people of Hawaii island as well as Maui. Education is important but just telling people to wash their vegetables [DOH says they'll spend it on preventative education] is not going to solve this problem. We will continue to see an increase in cases and people’s lives ruined unless we better understand this disease, and that can only happen through research."
http://www.staradvertiser.com/2017/04/28...2b1338e3bc
It's recommended to contact the following reps. to make sure Puna's voice is heard and Department of Health (DOH) provides UHH funding now.
HOUSE FIN Chair
Sylvia Luke
House District 25
Hawaii State Capitol, Room 306
phone: 808-586-6200
repluke@capitol.hawaii.gov
Senate Ways and Means
Jill N. Tokuda
Senate District 24
Hawaii State Capitol, Room 207
phone: 808-587-7215
fax: 808-587-7220
sentokuda@capitol.hawaii.gov
In essence we want the money to go to fund UHH rat lung research.