Health

COVID Slowly on the Decline

Wednesday, June 22nd, 2022

By Catherine Cluett Pactol | Editor

COVID trends are back on the decline statewide after sharp increases in May and early June. 

Daily average cases statewide are hovering at just below 1000, with an 18.9 percent positivity rate over the last week as of last Wednesday. That’s down from a daily average of more than 1200 at the end of May. 

On Molokai, the week between Wednesday, June 8 and Wednesday, June 15 brought 10 new cases, with 23 positive cases the previous week. Officials suggest multiplying the number of officially reported cases by a factor of five or six to account for home tests, which are not reported to the Dept.…

Tracking COVID Trends

Thursday, June 2nd, 2022

By Catherine Cluett Pactol | Editor

Molokai logged 18 new COVID cases in the week between May 18 and May 25, according to the Dept. of Health. That’s down from 26 the previous week, and 40 the week before that, May 4-11. However, officials suggest that the tally is likely five to seven times what’s officially reported, due to the influx of home COVID tests, which go unreported. By that calculation, last week’s Molokai cases probably range between 90 and 126 new cases. 

Between May 17 and May 26, Molokai Middle School reported eight new COVID cases and Molokai High School had two, according to the DOE weekly COVID report.…

COVID Cases on the Rise

Thursday, May 19th, 2022

By Catherine Cluett Pactol | Editor

Molokai logged 40 new COVID-19 cases in the week between Wednesday, May 4 and Wednesday, May 11, bringing the island total to 1,017 since the pandemic began. However, that number may be significantly lower than the actual number of recent positive cases because of the increased accessibility to home tests, the results of which aren’t reported to the state, according to health officials. 

Dr. Libby Char, Hawaii Dept. of Health director, said with the rise in prevalence of home COVID tests, it’s likely that more people are taking tests at home than at testing facilities.…

COVID Surge Causes School Cancellations

Wednesday, May 11th, 2022

By Catherine Cluett Pactol | Editor

A recent surge in COVID cases on Molokai has caused a disruption to some school classes and sports competitions. The Dept. of Health now only provides reporting on COVID case counts weekly on Wednesdays, with nine new cases reported for Molokai between Wednesday, April 17 and Wednesday, May 4, community reports suggest last week’s case numbers on Molokai were much higher. DOH officials did not respond to requests for updated Molokai counts. 

Last Sunday night, Molokai Middle School announced school closure this week, with cancellation of classes on Monday, May 10, followed by distance learning the rest of the week due to “the high number of cases among staff and students.”…

COVID Still Circulating

Wednesday, April 20th, 2022

By Catherine Cluett Pactol | Editor

After a couple of months with few COVID cases, the Department of Health reported five new COVID cases on Molokai in the week between Wednesday, April 6 and Wednesday, April 13.  There have been 955 cases on Molokai since the pandemic began. Case statistics are now only available on a weekly basis from the DOH. Statewide, there were 1327 new cases during the same period. 

Masks are no longer required indoors by state mandate, though most stores on Molokai continue to recommend them. It is the decision of private businesses whether or not to continue a policy of asking customers to wear masks on premises.…