{"id":8979,"date":"2021-10-02T03:50:34","date_gmt":"2021-10-02T13:50:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/?p=8979"},"modified":"2021-10-02T03:50:40","modified_gmt":"2021-10-02T13:50:40","slug":"hawaii-filipinos-covid-19-stats-dismal-campaign-to-vaccinate-ramped-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/2021\/10\/02\/hawaii-filipinos-covid-19-stats-dismal-campaign-to-vaccinate-ramped-up\/","title":{"rendered":"Hawaii Filipinos COVID-19 Stats Dismal, Campaign to Vaccinate Ramped Up"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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by Edwin Quinabo<\/em>

Prior to the outbreak of COVID-19, statistics that measure well-being haven\u2019t been flattering to Hawaii\u2019s Filipino community. In some areas like higher education, Filipinos trail behind Caucasians and Japanese in advanced degrees. In health, Filipinos have some of the highest rates of chronic illnesses.

Following this pattern, it doesn\u2019t stretch the imagination that their stats relating to COVID-19 are bleak relative to other ethnic groups.

What are the hard stats?\u00a0 Hawaii\u2019s Filipinos are second in COVID-19 cases in the state and first in COVID-19 related deaths, according to the State of Hawaii Department of Health (DOH).<\/em><\/strong>

Breaking down the numbers<\/strong>
Overall Stats.<\/strong> Since the start of the pandemic, there have been 757 deaths in the state. Filipinos account for 174 or 23% of deaths, placing them at the top, the DOH\u2019s online tracking site shows.

To date, there have been 78,404 cumulative cases of COVID-19 in Hawaii. Of the total, Filipinos make up 20% of cases, behind Native Hawaiians at 24%.

Pre-Vaccine Period.<\/em><\/strong> During the Pre-Vaccine Period between March 8, 2020 through Dec. 26, 2020, DOH reported 15,422 cases of COVID-19. Of that total during this period, 3,084 or 20% of Hawaii Filipino residents contracted COVID-19, placing this group only after Pacific Islander at 25%. Behind Filipinos are Native Hawaiians at 19%, Whites at 16%, Japanese at 7%, Chinese at 2%, and the rest fall into the others category.

Post-Vaccine Period.<\/em><\/strong> Since the vaccines were rolled out on Dec. 27, 2020 up to Sept. 20, 2021 (the Post-Vaccine Period) Filipinos remain the second highest ethnic group infected by COVID-19 at 19%.

Researchers from DOH and the University of Hawaii authored a report \u201cAddressing Health Equity in Diverse Populations<\/a>\u201dthat was published in March 2021 in the CDC\u2019s\u00a0Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report<\/a>. In it, Hawaii researchers crunched the numbers in Hawaii\u2019s Asian population into subgroups and found infection rates were highest among the Filipino and Vietnamese populations.

At this stage of the pandemic, the hope is for Hawaii\u2019s Filipino community to change course and get vaccinated en masse<\/em>. A vaccination campaign has been ramped up by community leaders and grassroots organizations to achieve this goal.

Bereaved wish they had vaccines available earlier \u2013 vaccines that others take for granted<\/strong>
\u201cIf only the COVID-19 vaccination were available sooner\u201d \u2013 this is the sentiment millions of family members and friends who had someone they love die before vaccines were rolled out and administered. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the first COVID-19 vaccine (Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine) on Dec. 11, 2020.

The idea that vaccines are available, but people are still not getting it knowing the risk and that millions of Americans have already died from COVID-19, leaves some bereaved families of COVID-19 perplexed, even agitated.

\u201cI always ask myself what if my aunt Andrea and her husband Pio did not contract COVID-19 that early and had the luxury of getting fully vaccinated. I would still be able to talk story with them and enjoy their company,\u201d said Dr. Jon Avery Go, an internist practicing in Waipahu, Hawaii.

Dr. Go elaborates, \u201cMy dear aunt worked as a nurse. She and her husband both were living in New York and caught COVID 19 around March 2020. This was the time when New York became the world\u2019s epicenter of COVID-19. Unfortunately, there were no known effective treatment regimen around that time and they\u00a0both had to\u00a0suffer and endure being hooked up to a breathing machine. \u00a0Eventually, their bodies could not fight anymore and they both passed away.\u201d

In this latest surge, the unvaccinated population make up a large majority of Covid infected and hospitalized not just in Hawaii, but globally.

Get vaccinated and save lives<\/strong>
\u201cI just don\u2019t get it,\u201d said Rey Clemente, 57, a hotel worker who said he got vaccinated in late April, 2021. Vaccination to every adult in Hawaii became available on April 19 this year.

\u201cI was out of work for months last year like most hotel workers. I was eager to get vaccinated so that our industry could reopen and I could start to work again,\u201d said Clemente. \u201cI got vaccinated not only for my family and myself, but for our community. We all want to get back to our normal lives. We should also be thinking about saving lives.\u201d

Possible Reasons for high COVID-19 cases among Filipinos<\/strong>
There are several reasons floated as to why Filipinos are hard hit by Covid — \u00a0the type of work they do (service oriented) and multigenerational living are the most common.

Work Environment.<\/em><\/strong> Lt. Gov. Josh Green, who is also an Emergency Room Physician, told the Filipino Chronicle, \u201cThe Filipino community is one of the very hardest working communities in our state, however during a pandemic this work can come with risk. Jobs like being a caregiver, a doctor, running a care home or working in a hotel (some examples of prominent jobs in the community)\u00a0means a lot of close contact with people and therefore more chances to catch COVID. I\u2019m proud of the hard-working Filipino community.\u201d

Like Lt. Gov. Green, Dr. Lyla Prather of the Philippine Medical Association of Hawaii told KITV 4 in Aug. 2020 that Filipinos\u2019 work environment \u2013 including healthcare, the service industry and other frontline working jobs \u2013 is fueling higher infection rates in Filipinos.

Clemente makes the point that most hotel workers were furloughed or laid off last year, \u201cbut there are many Filipinos who were essential workers back then, like our grocery store employees, dock workers, truck drivers, delivery drivers, healthcare workers.\u201d

He said, we should be thankful for what Filipinos did during the pre-vaccination period. \u201cThey sacrificed and risked their health so that our state could keep running.\u201d

Multigenerational living.<\/em><\/strong> Due to the high cost of living, rent, and real estate, multigenerational living is common among all ethnic groups in Hawaii. It is a contributing factor to Filipinos high infection rate, health experts say.\u00a0 Lt. Gov. Green said, \u201cFilipino families often live with three generations under the same roof, so with unvaccinated children returning homes from school there is added risk of spread. Kupuna who catch COVID are at the greatest risk so they must get vaccinated to avoid the delta variant.\u201d

Public health specialists say multigenerational infections are far more common with the Delta variant than the original virus. They say they\u2019re seeing two or more members within a household, or the entire household getting infected in this latest surge.

Dr. Go, who also believes multigenerational living spikes COVID-19 in Filipinos said, \u201cIf one family member contracts Covid19 then the whole household are vulnerable\u00a0due to their living situation.\u201d

Less Access.<\/em><\/strong> Lt. Gov. Green points out that there are less healthcare services in several rural parts of Hawaii like Ewa on Oahu or Ka\u2019u on Big Island. \u201dThese areas are often home to our Filipino families and therefore it\u2019s harder to get care sometimes. Our community health centers have stepped up to help though.\u201d

Not due to risky behavior.<\/em><\/strong> Dr. Prather doesn\u2019t believe Filipinos are at higher risk due to a lack of practicing prevention like social distancing or wearing a mask. \u201cWe\u2019re always really diligent about wearing our masks.\u201d

Survey: Filipinos are last among vaccinated in Hawaii<\/strong>
The DOH tracking website as of Sept. 27, 2021 shows 67.2% of Hawaii residents are vaccinated.

A breakdown of vaccination in the state based on ethnicity is not available. But a DOH commissioned survey (not a comprehensive data-tracking) conducted by Anthology Research (among 482 adult Hawaii full-time residents statewide) from April 20, 2021 to May 3, 2021 found that among the major ethnic groups in the state, Japanese (71%) and Caucasian (68%) respondents were more likely to be fully vaccinated than were Native Hawaiians (49%) and Filipinos (40%).

Filipinos are more vulnerable because of preexisting conditions.<\/em><\/strong> Lt. Gov. Green, said \u201cthe high rate of hypertension, diabetes or kidney disease means that our Filipino brothers and sisters can get more sick if they contract COVID. This makes it even more important to get vaccinated if you or a family member has these health challenges.\u201d

The DOH released two reports that illustrate how transmissible the Delta variant is and the importance of getting vaccinated. \u201cThese reports reinforce what we know about the alarming increase in cases across Hawaii. Delta is different\u2014 it is twice as transmissible as other variants,\u201d said Health Director Dr. Elizabeth Char, FACEP. \u201cCOVID-19 vaccines are highly effective at preventing severe disease, hospitalization and death, including from the delta variant.\u201d

Disinformation\/misinformation.<\/em><\/strong> Dr. Go believes one reason Filipinos have low vaccination rates (based on the DOH-commissioned survey, not actual data), is untrue facts about COVID-19. \u201cThere are too many misinformation and fake news floating around both social media and the Filipino communities against getting vaccinated.\u201d

Religious reason.<\/em><\/strong> Clemente said he doesn\u2019t pay attention to the lies on social media.\u00a0 He says what he has noticed is \u201cchurch people [mostly Evangelicals] on the mainland are resistant to getting vaccinated. I hope this is not the case here. I\u2019m Catholic and I haven\u2019t heard anyone telling me at church to not get vaccinated.\u201d

One of the exemptions for not getting vaccinated recognized by the State and counties for their employees is religious exemption. But there is a strict procedure to qualify for that exemption.

Community efforts to increase vaccinations in Filipino community<\/strong>
Pop-up vaccination clinics.<\/em><\/strong> As part of the DOH\u2019s goal to address health equity, it has been working with grassroots organizations to get more diverse populations vaccinated. DOH has worked with organizations like the Filipino Community Center. It has partnered with Kalihi-Palama Health Center, Kaiser Permanente and Project Vision Hawaii to organize pop-up vaccine clinics at the FilCom Center and other places like churches.

Filipino language as outreach strategy.<\/em><\/strong> Filipino community leaders say getting volunteers who speak Tagalog, Ilocano or Visayan helps not only to communicate the need for vaccination, but it also builds trust in Filipinos, especially among immigrants. That trust often can motivate someone skeptical of vaccines to get their shots, community volunteers say.

To bridge the language gap is why Emme Tomimbang with the support from The Queen\u2019s Health System and AARP Hawaii, produced a Public Service Announcement (PSA) in three different dialects: Ilocano, Tagalog, and Visayan, which aired on State mainstream television and radio stations.

Clemente said any effort to get Filipinos or any Hawaii resident vaccinated is something he supports. He also believes Filipinos are getting vaccinated more than people think. \u201cAll of my Filipino coworkers, family and friends are vaccinated.\u201d

Get the facts about vaccination out to community.<\/em><\/strong> Clemente said earlier in the year only one of his sisters and her husband were reluctant to get vaccinated because they have been hearing vaccinated people are getting infected and dying anyway. My sister said, \u201cwhy risk getting some side-effect through vaccines when the outcome is the same.

\u201cBut by June, they [his sister and brother-in-law] changed their minds and got vaccinated. \u00a0My sister said they decided to do it because of information they heard that \u2018people who are vaccinated are less likely to develop severe symptoms that would require hospitalization, even if they become infected,\u2019\u201d said Clemente.

He believes the attitudes on vaccination among Filipinos has changed. \u201cThat survey was taken a long time ago earlier this year [May]. I think our vaccination percent is higher today.\u00a0 And it should continue to rise as more people in our state get vaccinated.\u201d He said getting Filipinos the facts — like how his sister eventually came to understand — \u00a0will help to encourage people to their vaccine shots.

\u201cYou hear people going to hospitals because they\u2019ve caught COVID and were not vaccinated. I haven\u2019t heard people rushing to hospitals because they had some severe reaction to a COVID vaccine,\u201d said Clemente.

Filipino community leaders as pro-vaccination advocates.<\/em><\/strong> Dr. Green says Filipino physicians \u201care looked up to and may be the very best spokespeople for this mission [to get more Filipinos vaccinated].\u201d He encourages Filipino community leaders to reach out to the vaccine resistant population.

To illustrate the urgency for vaccination and how the virus is taking a toll on hospitals, Dr. Green wanted to share a story with Filipino Chronicle readers. \u201cOne of my dearest friends is a Filipina nurse and when her husband had a large heart attack, we worked together to get him to Oahu to get cardiology care.

\u201cBecause the hospitals were so full he almost died before he could get life flighted to Oahu. Together we got him care, and he lived and also avoided catching COVID. This shows how much COVID can affect us all. I have, also am proud to report that all of my Filipina aunties (from my wife Jaime\u2019s side), the Borromeo\u2019s, are fully vaccinated and healthy,\u201d said Green.

<\/a>Latest update on vaccination<\/strong>
The Food and Drug Administration last week approved <\/a>a third jab<\/a> for those inoculated with the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for Americans 65 and older, as well as those with high-risk conditions or in workplaces with greater exposure risk.

DOH said those who match the federal guidelines requiring a third shot must schedule their booster at least six months after their second Pfizer shot.

Hawaii currently has about 90,000 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Char advises people who have questions about vaccinations and booster shots should contact their personal physician. The state\u2019s health department website also has information on booster shots.
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by Edwin Quinabo Prior to the outbreak of COVID-19, statistics that measure well-being haven\u2019t been…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8924,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[3,20,11,5],"tags":[],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/coverstory-color_10022021.jpg?fit=1056%2C1197",1056,1197,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/coverstory-color_10022021.jpg?resize=150%2C150",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/coverstory-color_10022021.jpg?fit=265%2C300",265,300,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/coverstory-color_10022021.jpg?fit=640%2C726",640,726,true],"large":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/coverstory-color_10022021.jpg?fit=640%2C726",640,726,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/coverstory-color_10022021.jpg?fit=1056%2C1197",1056,1197,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/coverstory-color_10022021.jpg?fit=1056%2C1197",1056,1197,true],"ultp_layout_landscape_large":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/coverstory-color_10022021.jpg?resize=1056%2C800",1056,800,true],"ultp_layout_landscape":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/coverstory-color_10022021.jpg?resize=870%2C570",870,570,true],"ultp_layout_portrait":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/coverstory-color_10022021.jpg?resize=600%2C900",600,900,true],"ultp_layout_square":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/coverstory-color_10022021.jpg?resize=600%2C600",600,600,true],"covernews-slider-full":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/coverstory-color_10022021.jpg?resize=740%2C715",740,715,true],"covernews-slider-center":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/coverstory-color_10022021.jpg?resize=522%2C500",522,500,true],"covernews-featured":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/coverstory-color_10022021.jpg?fit=1024%2C1161",1024,1161,true],"covernews-medium":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/coverstory-color_10022021.jpg?resize=540%2C285",540,285,true],"covernews-medium-square":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/coverstory-color_10022021.jpg?resize=375%2C250",375,250,true]},"author_info":{"info":["admin"]},"category_info":"Cover Story<\/a> Featured<\/a> Hawaii - Filipino<\/a> News<\/a>","tag_info":"News","comment_count":"0","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/coverstory-color_10022021.jpg?fit=1056%2C1197","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8979"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8979"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8979\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8980,"href":"http:\/\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8979\/revisions\/8980"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8924"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8979"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8979"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thefilipinochronicle.com\/backup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8979"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}