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Tom Mitrano, head of community affairs at Bank of Hawaii, hosts a conversation on whether state government should bear primary responsibility for health and human services amid Hawaii's fiscal crisis. Susan Chandler, director of the Hawaii Department of Human Services, defends government's essential role: roughly 80 percent of her department's services are legally mandated, 1,238 positions are being abolished to save $25.8 million, and government alone can ensure equitable access to services the private sector will not provide voluntarily. Frank Chong, director of the Waikiki Health Center, agrees on partnership but argues the state's $80 million in contracted nonprofit spending is a drop in the bucket beside the $6 billion state budget and that funding decisions are budget-driven rather than shaped by clear program priorities. Chong faults the legislature for largely withdrawing from the human services debate. Chandler cites the Felix lawsuit compelling improved children's mental health services and describes visiting Oregon to study its benchmarking approach, which she is adapting for her department. Callers press on government efficiency, sick-leave practices, and the challenge of addressing root causes rather than symptoms.
Transcript
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Companion newspaper commentaries
Commentaries by the guests, published in The Honolulu Advertiser around the broadcast.
