Micronesians on Hawaii staged a rally last week in support of keeping their medical benefits.
A large number of the Micronesian community residing in the state of Hawaii marched along the Ala Moana boulevard in support of medical benefits for Micronesians, following a court ruling earlier this month.
According to KHON news in Hawaii, a court ruling issued early April suggested the state would no longer have to pay for medical expenses not covered by federal dollars, meaning hundreds of Micronesian could lose out on their medical benefits.
For now, the state claims it is not going along with the court’s ruling.
Thousands of Freely Associated States citizens from Palau, the Marshall Islands, and the Federated States of Micronesia calls Hawaii home, and many of them rely on medical benefits.
Supporters of the rally expressed hope that a decision would be made in favor of life, not a decision to neglect or take away health care from a group of people.
Like Guam and CNMI, Hawaii has made strong statements about the costs associated with hosting citizens from these three freely associated states.
Lawmakers such as Hawaii representative Colleen Hanabusa are pushing for the federal government to reimburse states for the cost of covering medical coverage, however proposed legislations have been on standstill in the U.S. Congress.