Before Hurricane Iniki struck Hawaii in 1992, homeowners insurance covered losses from fire, windstorm, hurricane and other causes. Immediately after Iniki, homeowners insurance, which continued to include hurricane coverage, became extremely scarce. Without hurricane coverage, lenders could not make mortgages and few families could buy homes.
As a result, in 1993, the Legislature created the HHRF, which was funded from a combination of sources.
After the creation of the HHRF, homeowners had to buy two insurance policies, a homeowners policy and another from HHRF for hurricane risk.
Unfortunately, disasters in other parts of the world directly affect rates in the reinsurance market, which then influence our rates. Purchasing $500 million of hurricane coverage in the reinsurance market means an annual cost of $80 million, which goes out of the state.
Act 17, Special Session of 1995 enabled the state to explore methods of financing the HHRF using means other than reinsurance. Possible methods of financing the hurricane fund include:
Revenue bonds;
Federal funds, through a loan guarantee;
Loan commitments from financial institutions;
A combination of the above.
Stabilized hurricane insurance premium rates;
Reduction of rates in the future;
Accumulated reserves for disaster relief;
More money remaining in Hawaii, helping the local economy.
Examples of uses of revenue bonds to achieve savings include:
1. Before a hurricane. If $500 million reinsurance coverage costs $80 million, as it did in 1993, and the debt service on revenue bonds is 10 percent, the state can issue $500 million in bonds for $40 million, saving $30 million;
2. After a hurricane. If the state uses loans to finance payment of claims, revenue bonds can be issued to repay the loans later, if interest rates are favorable; every percentage point difference between the prevailing rate on bank loans and the rate on revenue bonds, will save $5 million on a $500 million principal.
These bonds will be more marketable if they are tax-exempt. To secure tax-exempt status, I am working on legislation with Sen. Daniel Inouye and the rest of the Hawaii congressional delegation.
Repayment of any revenue bonds will come from premiums and assessments, and their issuance will not count toward the state debt limit, unlike general obligation bonds.
By helping us stabilize rates and making us less susceptible to rate increases caused by worldwide disasters, passage of this constitutional amendment could save a considerable amount of money and give Hawaii better control of its destiny.
Vicky, a college student, was juggling school work and a part-time job, and did not take care of a very bad cold and a high fever that turned into encephalitis. She has short-term memory problems and has to deal with seizures.
Both have brain injury and are trying to get their lives back together again.
Of course, these are not the common causes of brain/head injuries. But they are common occurences. They could happen to any one of us. We need not be riding a motorcycle or a bicycle without a helmet, or driving recklessly at 100 miles per hour. The chances of injury are a threat to all.
Vehicular accidents are the largest single cause, accounting for 70 percent of all brain injuries in the United States. Other causes are: jumps and falls; assaults; gunshot wounds; and sports and recreational injuries.
On July 29, President Bill Clinton signed the Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Act into law, after it had been passed unanimously by Congress. This historic piece of legislation will provide states with federal grants to start up model service programs for people with brain injury.
The act also will give the Centers for Disease Control money to create prevention initiatives. Most importantly, by passing this legislation, the federal government has recognized people with brain injury and the problems associated with brain injury.
More than two million Americans sustain brain injuries each year. Of these, about 373,000 are severe enough to require hospitalization. With one brain injury occurring every 15 seconds, this public health concern ranks as the leading cause of death and disability among children and young adults.
For those who survive, brain injury is life-altering. Serious physical impairments are frequently a result, as well as a variety of cognitive, behavioral and emotional complications. In addition, health-care costs are staggering - survivors typically face five to 10 years of intensive rehabilitation, with cumulative costs exceeding $48 billion annually.
Brain injury is known as the Silent Epidemic. Many survivors display no physical signs of disability. They may look like everybody else, but they may have some cognitive, emotional, behavioral, psychosocial or other forms of physical impairments. They may have difficulties with judgment, concentration, communication, planning or spatial perceptions. They also might have problems with impulsivity or disinhibition. Or they may have lost their sense of smell, taste or hearing, or have reduced endurance.
Despite their frequency, there is still much ignorance and lack of understanding about brain/head injuries. The need for education and awareness of the etiology and the management of the disabilities resulting from such injuries is critical.
Hopefully, with the emergence of the TBI Act, the many aspects of traumatic brain injury will become better known. The act had broad support of the Brain Injury Association, a national support group for TBI survivors based in Washington, D.C., which for five years faithfully contacted representatives and senators providing them with valuable information about this condition.
Now it is time for Hawaii to get into the act. The TBI Act authorizes the federal government to spend some $24.5 million during the next three years. Part of this appropriation will be allotted to the states in the form of grants for developing model treatment programs to improve access to health and other services regarding traumatic brain injury.
However, in order for any state to be able to apply for these grants, an advisory board needs to be established, with representatives from the corresponding state agencies, public and private health-related organizations, members of a TBI organization, injury control programs, and a substantial number of TBI survivors and family members.
This board will make recommendations to the state on ways to improve services coordination regarding traumatic brain injury. Now is the time for our state officials, especially those in the departments of Health and Human Services, to put this board in place, so that Hawaii can take advantage of this valuable opportunity.
To improve awareness about brain injury, Hawaii's Pacific Head Injury Association (PHIA) and the Rehabilitation Hospital of the Pacific are sponsoring "Brain Injury - The Long Journey Home," a conference for survivors, their families and medical professionals and caregivers, which began today and continues tomorrow at the Ala Moana Hotel.
In addition, both Gov. Ben Cayetano and Honolulu Mayor Jeremy Harris have designated October as Brain Injury Awareness Month. Hopefully, these and other PHIA projects will enable the brain injury community to get the recognition and services it deserves.