This is the first in a series covering various aspects of Hawaii’s preparation for the return of visitors. Today, we’re discussing just how Hawaii will manage a completely new paradigm including pre-travel testing and on-arrival airport procedures.
We aren’t sure yet how this is going to unfold, and neither is Hawaii’s mayors. Big Island Mayor Harry Kim said he did not know that Hawaii would reopen on October 15, until he heard it at the same press conference as all of us did on Wednesday.
That in itself seems odd that such a major announcement was made without consulting the leader of each island. Everyone got caught off guard except perhaps Hawaiian Airlines. They had updated their flight resumption date to be October 15, early in the morning on Wednesday. That was hours before the governor’s announcement. Is it possible that they learned about this even before the mayors did?
Kim and other officials are trying to figure out what systems will need to be in place in the relatively short time available. He wants to avoid chaos at the airport regarding aspects of pre-travel testing and hasn’t been advised by the state how things will work. Kim said, “Is the test still good? How long is it good for? Should they be re-tested? How will they be identified? All of these things need to be worked out or else you’re going to have a pile-up at the airport and you’re going to have a lot of angry passengers and they have a right to be angry. All those things need to be addressed before this policy is established.”
Kauai’s mayor has similar concerns, given that there’s much to be done in the short time allotted. He was hoping there would be interisland testing as a prelude to October 15. It is not clear whether that could still happen. The issues he faces include segregating those who have negative test results on arrival, those waiting on results who need temporary quarantine, and those who have had no testing and need a full quarantine. Kawakami said he would also like to have a second round of post-travel testing, but said, “whether or not that’s actually achievable is another question.”
Honolulu’s Mayor Caldwell also mentioned he was hopeful of an interisland testing program first, although he is not aware of whether Hawaii has adequate testing capabilities for travel at this time. He said, “One concern I have as Mayor of the City and County of Honolulu is our capacity to test.”
Maui’s Mayor Victorino is all in favor of the date certain for tourism to resume. He, like Kauai’s major, would like to see a post-arrival testing component added. Victorino went on to say, “Especially Lanai, which had zero cases, a second round of testing will be applicable, I would like to see that happen.”
We’ll have more updates on this and look forward to sharing those with you.
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Aloha Rob and Jeff,
This will be an interesting program for returning residents.
I recently traveled to Tahiti – French Polynesia opened to the world on July 15th. They required a particular COVID test within three days of the flight and referred to two labs capable of providing the test in a timely manner. The cost was $125. I had the test on Tuesday at noon and had my results on Wednesday morning online. I printed the results, completed their online form, and took everything to the airport. All worked quite well. The ship required a test before boarding and provided a self test we used on the fourth day of our arrival. All three were negative.
It can be done. Perhaps using the Air Tahiti Nui website will show a protocal that has been working for several months.
Mahalo for all your amazing assistance to our Ohana,
Melissa
Hi Melissa.
Thanks for that and good to be in touch again.
Aloha.
Will visitors from the mainland be allowed to skip quarantine after Oct 15 if they get tested first on the mainland, fly to Oahu, then another island? Many flights from the mainland go thru Oahu first. This has not been made clear in any announcements I can find. Thanks!
Hi Jon.
That has not yet been specifically addressed. But certainly, it will be, and you should be able to go via Honolulu to a neighbor island without quarantine as long as you have been tested.
Aloha.
It would be great if the government would just admit to and release the facts of this virus because it seems to be the one and only entity people have all eyes and ears on.
Knowledge can give peace of mind;
1) for the majority of us our immune system will defeat the virus at its landing site of the nose or throat. That’s the MAJORITY of us.
2) Some men do have a harder time with this virus than women and children due to testosterone, as it seems to increase the number of ACE2 receptors that cells produce.
3) the number one way to prevent this virus from wreaking havoc on you, is your immune system. Unlike the flu, which kills our cells, this virus is not a cell killer so it responds better to our immune system; it will immediately trigger an immune attack. So, take your vitamins, eat right, wash your hands when necessary…and seriously….stop wearing the stupid masks. How is your immune system supposed to be strong when you are suppressing it from the good viruses and bacteria? I just don’t even know what else to say about masks, other than they are very counterintuitive.
4) most of the deaths were due to old age- over 75 and/or other factors. I can tell you from first hand experience, if someone has a comorbidity, the common cold can kill them. COVID is not novel in this regard.
So, those are some of the facts. We can not continue to live in fear. It is literally eroding America and our way of life unnecessarily. We have to start speaking up. We’re not children. We have voices. We make decisions for ourselves every single day and some are risky decisions, which we rarely think twice about. Like getting into our cars and driving to work or hopping on plane to go on vacation. At some point, we are going to have to speak up or we’re going to continue spin cycling in our heads and conversations.
My question is, how many people who are coming off of flights are the ones who are testing positive and/or are spreading this virus? Because, passenger planes are still flying. My daughter just went from LA to Colorado to Texas and back a couple of weeks ago and she and her friend survived unscathed.
I was wondering, since I am coming from the mainland and need a COVID test before entering Hawaii. Will people departing Hawaii, for the mainland, need a COVID test before they leave?
The crazy thing is that they have had months to figure this out. This opening was originally slated for August 1. So why now are they still trying to figure this out? This is very frustrating being a small business owner. Obviously, the tests are only good for that day it was taken. This will not stop the virus but limit its transmission. There are at least 2 fast tests (15 minute results) that are close to as accurate as the main one being used now and could be used at the airports upon departure or arrival. There are other countries and states using these now. Why is our government so slow in figuring this out?
All of the mayors comments and concern are correct and real. For this reason my family will not be returning to Hawaii until early November. I am expecting that either many of the questions have been addressed or the state will shut down again. The one major question I have is being able to take the ferry to Lanai on the day we arrive. What is the procedure going to be for people traveling from the mainland to Lanai flying through Maui? The major concern I have is having my tests accepted upon arrival. There are very few places in our city where we can get testing done and back within 24 hours so that we can arrive within 72 hours of the test. CVS, Riteaid, Wallgreens. and Lab Corp. all take at least 7 days.
This is great news! Hopefully, they will make it more clear as to how the pre-testing will work. Right now local CVS pharmacies have no idea what we are talking about in regards to testing for travel purposes.CVS testing as it stands now still has a 3-7 day wait time for testing results.
I am in complete agreement with Kimberly. Our constitutionally given rights are being taken away left and right. Political pun not intended. We, as Americans need to stand up for those rights. Thank God for the Judge in Pennsylvania.
Aloha Guys
Great question and I love how you’re breaking up the issues of reopening in a series.
It will all be predicated on early tourist volume, training, traveler preparedness, testing clarification and patients. Lots of patients.
Coming from the west coast it’s an easy 5 hour non-stop flight for us patients will be no problem, but when you have a 3 generation family from the east coast with 3 or 4 flight changes on their dream vacation to Hawaii that’s going to be another story.
I sure wouldn’t want to be the staff that’s going to have to deal with checking covid test documents on a busy Saturday or Sunday full of inbound flights loaded with folks from the east coast.
Can you imagine dealing with “Do you have any idea how much we spent to get here” or “Where’s your supervisor I want to speak to him” or “Do you know who I am”.
Those poor folks working at the airports are going to have PTSD after the first day.
If history is any indication when it comes to covid test verification Hawaii will not be ready.
I’d like to be proven wrong, but a part of me is looking forward to outraged tourist Hawaiian airport videos posted on the net.
Hi Richard.
Yes, it is going to be interesting. We do not know where the state is in preparation for October 15, and hope to know a lot more this coming week.
Aloha.
We are coming in February dobwe need to cancel
I think the HI Government is setting themselves up for lawsuits. Nothing about how they’ve handled this virus is actually lawful. I’m not speaking of just Hawaii. California, New york… any state that did the over-the-top lock downs and especially the ones that still are in lock down, like California, Hawaii and New York. State of Emergencies are not supposed to take away our rights and liberties, our right to privacy, our right to earn a living, our right to run our business…. California, Hawaii and New York ARE the test states.If people don’t start educating themselves, we’re all going to lose.
Below are the words from the Judge in the recent Pennsylvania case; He ruled the Covid responses are unconstitutional. I have taken them as warning to all of us.
U.S. District Judge William S. Stickman IV wrote in a 66-page opinion. (Pennsylvania)
Excerpts:
“In an emergency, even a vigilant public many let down its guard over its constitutional liberties only to find that liberties, once relinquished, are hard to recoup and that restrictions – while expedient in the face of an emergency situation – may persist long after immediate danger has passed.”
“There is no question that this Country has faced, and will face, emergencies of every sort, but the solution to a national crisis can never be permitted to supersede the commitment to individual liberty that stands as the foundation of the American experiment.”
“The Constitution cannot accept the concept of a ‘new normal,’ where the basic liberties of the people can be subordinated to open-ended emergency mitigation measures, rather, the Constitution sets certain lines that may not be crossed even in an emergency.”
These governors are not acting within the law. People REALLY need to know that.
Absolutely agree. I live in PA and our governor has become a dictator, makes decisions with no input from the PA senate or house. We have a republic. It’s Not supposed to be one person making these decisions and taking away our freedoms.
I very much want to go and try my hand at surfing Waikiki
I’m down for some $79 flights! But what’s holding me back are the outrageous prices for the hotels/ condos. Do you think there will be some good deals coming on accommodations!?
Yes! Check out vacation rentals through VRBO. Cheaper, better and safer than staying in hotels.
The real question is: Will We be ready for Hawaii on October 15th. No Way.Nope. I don’t think so.
Maybe next October 15th.
Sorry Jeff. Just can’t see us coming so soon. It is going to be a real side show the way it is all playing out and that does not coincide with a Peaceful Hawaiian Vacation in my book. It is too hard to save up for a nice vacation. We don’t want a ‘kind of’ ‘sort of’ vacation. Thanks for keeping us informed.
Hi Colleen.
You know that it will be our pleasure to see you whenever you decide to next come.
Aloha.
Aloha! The Abbott ID NOW rapid test. FDA ‘authorized’. Do you think this test will be ok? Or who can I ask? Thanks.
“This test has not been FDA cleared or approved. This test has been authorized by FDA under an EUA for use by authorized laboratories. This test has been authorized only for the detection of nucleic acid from SARS-CoV-2, not for any other viruses or pathogens. This test is only authorized for the duration of the declaration that circumstances exist justifying the authorization of emergency use of in vitro diagnostic tests for detection and/or diagnosis of COVID-19 under Section 564(b)(1) of the Act, 21 U.S.C. § 360bbb-3(b)(1), unless the authorization is terminated or revoked sooner.”
Hi Sandra.
You can try writing to the governor’s office, but it is doubtful you will get any meaningful response. We’ll report more on the testing as soon as it is released. As of today, there is nothing more.
Aloha.
I would not pay for a second test. Will Hawaii pay for me to get another? I doubt it. Its not needed when there is continuing social distancing and masks in public.
Having just returned from a mainland trip, my wife and I were quite satisfied with the safety at initial check-in, TSA screening, boarding and assigned seat separation. Unfortunately, baggage claim was no different than normal (elbow to elbow) and the ‘all aboard’ process on the rental car shuttle was downright scary. Are conditions better in Hawaii; especially on the neighbor islands?
We’ve postponed our vacation from mid January to early March; hoping for the best and very much appreciative of all the info at Beat of Hawaii.
Hi Dodge.
Good to hear from you. We can’t say since there really hasn’t been any tourism here to speak of. We’ll be reporting as soon as things start including heading down to the airport. Thanks.
Aloha.
Requiring a valid Covid test 72 hours before arrival is going to be extremely difficult to actually pull off. Any idea how/where you can get a test result back that quickly, especially not having symptoms?!
As it now reads that as long as you can verify that you took a test within 72 hours of your departure you are ok. If you do not get results as negative prior to arriving on the islands you will need to show you took a test and then quarantine until the negative result is sent to you.
Tony
Tony, actually as it reads now you must have the test within 72 hours of arrival-not departure. Just with that, travelers can be losing some valuable time on getting their results back…especially if they have long flights.
I want to say thank you to Beat of Hawaii for your honest reporting about the effects of Covid-19 closures. Your article on September 8th about the human toll of closures, layoffs and terminations was eye opening. It took courage to report on the damage the government has inflicted on the innocent population. I think that story was helpful in the decision to reopen the economy. Keep up the good work and don’t give in to those that try to censor you and those they don’t agree with. People need to concentrate on how low the absolute death rate truly is and not panic when cases rise slightly as Hawaiians start to get back to enjoying their freedom.
Hi Rob.
Thanks for your words, the encouragement, and your previous comments.
Aloha.
I agree with everything Rob T said. Your reporting has been outstanding and objective so a big mahalo for that.
The statistics have been shamelessly manipulated to support a particular agenda and hurt our economy. I suspect they are also underestimating the true extent of the damage.
What is the status of the antigen testing mentioned by Josh Green over a week ago? Will that be part of the October 15 reopening plan?
And when the State says a “negative test” does that mean the PCR version? The news article I read did not specify.
Hi Mike.
Thanks. No further word on the two other aspects of Josh Green’s testing ideas from a week ago. Yes we believe it does mean PCR.
Aloha.
I continue to wonder about a plane full of people flying together and how a 72 hour test is going to matter. All will have been exposed to those on the plane with no test. Doesn’t that make the previous test, in essence, void?
Wear your mask on the plane and the risk is very low from an asymptomatic carrier…the key is wear a mask and dont get on plane if you are sick
Complete buffoonery as we have come to expect from Hawaiian Govt
Aloha! My head is spinning looking at this “Plan”…reminds of the famous quote attribute to Benjamin Franklin, “If you fail to plan, you are planning to FAIL !”…that all Mayors were not involved in “the plan” appears egregious and disingenuous, but not surprising because it looks like this is the way the inept Gov. Ige rolls. Did BOH say he is “terming out” soon??? Not soon enough, in my humble opinion!
Hi Nita.
Thanks for your dozens of comments. Governor Ige’s final term ends in two years.
Aloha.
Next level confusion will commence in 10,9,8,7….on OCT 16th.