By Nina Wu
Copyright staradvertiser
Hawaii has issued its own set of vaccine recommendations for the respiratory virus season this winter ahead of upcoming federal guidance that will likely differ.
The Hawaii Department of Health, as part of the West Coast Health Alliance with California, Washington and Oregon, on Wednesday issued recommendations for COVID-19, flu and RSV in advance of a federal advisory committee scheduled to review the vaccines today and Friday.
Together, the alliance recommends all children ages 6 to 23 months old as well as pregnant women get the COVID-19 vaccine. It also recommends the COVID-19 vaccine be given to all children and adults who choose the protection.
The flu vaccines are recommended for virtually all people, and RSV vaccines for infants and older adults.
“Our states are united in putting science, safety, and transparency first — and in protecting families with clear, credible vaccine guidance,” said the four state governors, including Gov. Josh Green, in a joint statement. “The West Coast Health Alliance stands united in protecting public health and always putting safety before politics.”
These recommendations, the alliance said, are informed by trusted national medical groups such as the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the American Academy of Family Physicians.
HMSA, the state’s largest insurance provider, previously told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser that it would continue to cover COVID vaccines without cost for anyone 6 months and older. Kaiser Permanente, which began providing vaccines Monday, said Friday in an email that COVID vaccines also are available at no cost for members 6 months and older.
The alliance’s directive comes during a tumultuous time as federal health agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention under the leadership of U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. undergo major upheavals.
Kennedy over the summer eschewed the usual process of vaccine guidance by announcing via social media that COVID-19 vaccines were no longer recommended for pregnant women and healthy children.
He fired all 17 members of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which is set to review and make recommendations on the vaccines today and Friday, and replaced them with his own picks.
He also fired former CDC Director Susan Monarez, who on Wednesday testified before a Senate committee that she was asked to approve childhood vaccine schedule changes without scientific review, the New York Times said.
In response to the announcement, U.S. Health and Human Services spokesman Andrew Nixon once again said, “Democrat-run states that pushed unscientific school lockdowns, toddler mask mandates, and draconian vaccine passports during the COVID era completely eroded the American people’s trust in public health agencies. ACIP remains the scientific body guiding immunization recommendations in this country, and HHS will ensure policy is based on rigorous evidence and Gold Standard Science, not the failed politics of the pandemic.”
But the alliance said it was fighting back against the Trump administration’s “chaos and politicization of science.”
Furthermore, it said all recommended immunizations should be accessible to “the people of our states.”
DOH Director Dr. Kenneth Fink said vaccines remain the best protection against serious illness from respiratory viruses.
“Seasonal immunization also is a critical public health tool to reduce community transmission and strain on the health care system,” said Fink in a news release Wednesday. “These recommendations were developed collaboratively with trusted partners. They are informed by the most current guidance from national medical organizations and are grounded in strong scientific consensus.”
The guidance, DOH said, highlights groups at highest risk for complications, including young children, older adults, pregnant individuals and people living in congregate settings — but that vaccination is recommended for anyone who desires protection.
“DOH strongly encourages health insurers to continue coverage of these life-saving immunizations at no cost to patients and commends insurers who already provide this protection,” said the department in a news release.
Kennedy has replaced most of the ACIP with vaccine skeptics and controversial figures.
Among his appointees is Dr. Kirk Milhoan, medical director of For Hearts and Souls Free Medical Clinic in Kihei, Maui. Milhoan, a pediatric cardiologist and senior pastor at Calvary Chapel South Maui, promoted ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine during the early years of the COVID-19 pandemic, which at the time ran counter to CDC advice.
The state in 2022 investigated Milhoan — who expressed concerns about myocarditis resulting from COVID vaccines — for allegedly spreading misinformation, but took no legal action.
Last month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved updated COVID-19 vaccines, but only for people ages 65 and older or those younger with a health condition that puts them at higher risk of severe COVID-19.
The ACIP is expected to review and discuss several vaccines, including those for measles, mumps, rubella and varicella, hepatitis B, and COVID-19 today and Friday.
An insurance trade group, America’s Health Insurance Plans, meanwhile, has announced that its members will continue to cover updated COVID-19 and flu vaccines recommended as of Sept. 1 through the end of 2026.
WEST COAST HEALTH ALLIANCE VACCINE RECOMMENDATIONS 2025-2026
>> Children: All children ages 6 to 23 months; All children 2 to 18 years old with risk factors or never vaccinated against COVID-19; All who are in close contact with others with risk factors; All who choose protection.
>> Pregnancy: All who are planning pregnancy, pregnant, postpartum or lactating.
>> Adults: All who are 65 years and older; All younger than 65 with risk factors; All who are in close contact with others with risk factors; All who choose protection.
>> Children: All 6 months and older.
>> Pregnancy: All who are planning pregnancy, pregnant, postpartum or lactating.
>> Adults: All
>> Children: All younger than 8 months; All 8 to 19 months with risk factors.
>> Pregnancy: 32-36 weeks gestational age.
>> Adults: All 75 years and older; All 50 to 74 years old with risk factors.
Source: West Coast Health Alliance, Hawaii Department of Health
