Debaters vow social services
By Lynda Arakawa
Advertiser Capitol Bureau
The gubernatorial candidates and their running mates pledged to support health and human services programs and highlighted their accomplishments in social programs yesterday at a forum sponsored by the Alliance for Health and Human Services.
Deborah Booker • The Honolulu Advertiser
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mazie Hirono and Republican gubernatorial nominee Linda Lingle agreed on a handful of issues brought up before the more than 100 social service providers and others at the forum in the state Capitol auditorium.
Lieutenant governor candidates Matt Matsunaga and Duke Aiona greet each other before debating in front of representatives of health and human services programs.
Both said a strong economy is critical in funding health and human services programs, and both stressed the importance of supporting health care in rural areas.
Hirono said she would focus on prevention services and noted her establishment of the public-private Pre-Plus preschool program. She also stressed a "zero tolerance" policy for domestic violence and promised to provide services for the perpetrators as well. She said she would work to create more shelters for domestic-violence victims and assured nonprofit agencies they would have a prominent role in her plans as governor.
"You will have a strong voice in my administration," Hirono told those at the forum. "You will be at my table."
Lingle highlighted various points of her career as Maui mayor, including a committee she created to address homelessness, which resulted in Maui receiving a federal housing award for homeless programs, she said. She said she would consider a person's community service when selecting her cabinet.
Lingle also said the state is not taking advantage of tens of millions of dollars in federal reimbursements and is not accessing all the grants available.
"I've never met a politician yet who doesn't want to help other people," she said. "But the issue comes to where do we find the money."
Hirono said she wants to expand programs that help people suffering from substance abuse and mental illness and said the way to fund it is to build a stronger economy. Lingle said she wants insurance companies to provide a level of benefits for mental illnesses comparable to benefits provided for other kinds of health problems.
On the subject of health insurance, Hirono promised not to dismantle Hawai'i's prepaid health insurance act that requires employers to provide medical insurance for employees. Lingle criticized the state, saying it doesn't provide medical coverage for temporary hires.
"If you're going to promote something you're going to have to practice what you preach," she said.
Lingle, and Hirono and her running mate state Sen. Matt Matsunaga said they support a woman's right to choose whether to remain pregnant, while Lingle's running mate James "Duke" Aiona said he feels that "abortion as a moral matter is wrong."
Matsunaga said that as lieutenant governor he would establish a "state office of grant coordination" that would help nonprofit agencies obtain government and private money.
Aiona talked about his experience as a judge for the Family and Circuit courts. Aiona was the first judge in charge of the state's "drug court," which gives nonviolent criminal defendants a chance to rehabilitate themselves under the judge's guidance.
