Bill calls for temporary transfer of Maui veterans home project to Oʻahu health care agency

A future 60-bed Maui veterans home for the long-term health care of island veterans, their spouses and gold-star parents is in the planning stages, with possible locations in Central Maui.

Meanwhile, state lawmakers have passed a bill to kick-start the $93 million Maui project by transferring development plans from the state Department of Defense to the Oʻahu region of Hawaii Health Systems Corp. The state DOD initiated the project in March 2023 when it submitted a pre-grant application to the US Department of Veterans Affairs.

The federal agency has authorized funding for 268 veterans home beds in Hawaiʻi. State veterans homes are funded primarily through the VA, along with medicare and medicaid funds.

Draft plans for an 82,500-square-foot Maui veterans home include a project timeline, with the facility ready for patient intake and care in 2029 or 2030; state (35%) and federal (64%) funding sources; and conceptual project site plans. The plans are in a March slide presentation to the state Department of Education by Tommy Driskell, former HHSC president and chief executive officer who has overseen veterans home projects in Hilo, 95 beds; and Kapolei, Oʻahu, 120 beds.

There’s another 53 VA-funded beds available for Maui, plus seven beds funded by the state for the total of 60 beds at the planned Maui facility. Potential locations include: 4.1 acres on the west side of UH Maui College near the intersection of Kaʻahumanu Avenue and Wahinepio and South Papa avenues; 4.2 acres at Keōpūolani Regional Park; and 6.7 acres at Maui High School, abutting West Papa Avenue.

Conceptual plans for the Maui veterans home include:

• Support facilities such as rehabilitation and therapy rooms, a kitchen, dining room, laundry, pharmacy, common areas and administrative offices.
• Types of services including skilled nursing care, rehabilitation therapies, hospice care, long-term care, geriatric mental health, Alzheimer’s care, dementia, respite and eventually adult day health.

According to Driskell’s presentation, there are approximately 7,500 veterans on Maui with 4,000 age 65 and older.

Aside from creation of employment for the construction and operations of the veterans home, project benefits include more federal funding for Maui; the creation of training programs in collaboration with UH Maui College; and a significant increase in capacity for long-term health care beds.

Maui Memorial Medical Center also is expected to benefit from having less demand for acute-care beds from veterans whose medical care needs can be met at a “sub-acute” care facility, such as the Maui veterans home.

Bill 2837 is not on Gov. Josh Green’s “intent to veto” list, so the measure will become law with or without his signature.

The Department of Defense has undertaken the Maui project, but lawmakers determined that the management, operation and staffing of such a facility should be placed under the HHSC’s Oʻahu region, at least temporarily. The bill sets out a deadline of June 30, 2027, for the Maui state veterans home to be assimilated into a state agency with a Maui affiliation.

Retired state Sen. Avery Chumbley, chair of the HHSC Maui Region Board, said via email Wednesday that his goal is to have the Maui board take over management and oversight of the facility.

“Having it in the Oʻahu Region Board is just an interim step to get this moving,” he said. “This is really exciting for Maui. It’s a long haul to get to a finished facility but well worth efforts.”

Submitting testimony to state lawmakers on behalf of the Department of Defense, Bruce Oliveira, interim director of Hawaiʻi Office of Veterans Services, supported the transfer of development authority to the HHSC.

While the Maui project’s construction is being undertaken by his department, it does not have the medical expertise for continued management, operation and staffing of a long-term care health facility, Oliveira said.

HHSC Oʻahu Region Chief Administrative Officer Sean Sanada said the Oʻahu Region is willing to take on management of a Maui state veterans home until the Maui Region has the ability to take it over.

However, Sanada reminded lawmakers that his agency still has the responsibility of constructing the Daniel K. Akaka State Veterans Home on Oʻahu, and “we have yet to fully grasp the magnitude of our responsibilities” for that project.

He asked lawmakers for their “continued understanding and support as we deal with the many unforeseen legal and logistical issues that will likely arise for the (Akaka facility) and, if given the responsibility, the planned Maui facility,” Sanada said.

In other written testimony, Haʻikū resident and UH Mānoa social work student Ohad Amidor supported passage of Senate Bill 2837, saying the bill is “a crucial step toward addressing the unmet needs of our veterans community on the island of Maui.”

“The absence of a state veterans home on Maui has left a significant gap in providing long-term care and rehabilitation services to our veterans and their spouses,” Amidor said. “This is an unacceptable oversight considering the sacrifices these individuals made for our country. We must provide them with the care and support they deserve.”