David Y. Ige

HONOLULU – On January 3, the Department of Public Safety announced a $25 incentive for all fully vaccinated inmates who choose to receive the booster shot. Currently, 255 inmates received the booster.

This $25 booster bonus is in addition to the one-time $50 incentive offered to all inmates in PSD custody who completed their full vaccination. The vaccine incentive program applies to all inmates in PSD custody on or after March 3, 2021, through December 31, 2024, who are still in custody. The payments are deposited into the inmate’s spendable trust account. A portion of the money is withdrawn for victim restitution.

PSD requested and received approval for $615,000 in federal American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) funds to be specifically used as an incentive initiative for offenders in custody. So far $153,550 has been expended.

COVID-19 testing is continuously being conducted in the state prisons and jails as well as in the contracted Saguaro Correctional Center in Eloy, AZ. The latest testing updates received for the correctional facilities are as follows:

Oahu Community Correctional Center – 226 inmate test results; 45 positive, 181 negative. One (1) positive staff test result.

Halawa Correctional Facility – 154 inmate test results; 38 positive, 116 negative. Four (4) positive staff test results.

Kulani Correctional Facility – 98 inmate test results; One (1) positive, 97 negative.

Waiawa Correctional Facility – One (1) positive inmate test result. One (1) positive staff test result.

Maui Community Correctional Center – 35 negative inmate test results.  One (1) inmate has recovered.

Women’s Community Correctional Center – Two (2) negative inmate test results.

Hawaii Community Correctional Center – Seven (7) negative inmate test results.

Kauai Community Correctional Center – One (1) negative inmate test result. One (1) employee has recovered.

COVID-19 updates for other PSD Divisions are as follows:

Administrative Division – One (1) positive admin employee test result.

Sheriff Division – Five (5) Sheriff Division employees have recovered and returned to work.

The Department of Public Safety (PSD) continues to encourage all staff and inmates to voluntarily get tested and receive the COVID-19 vaccination. For more detailed inmate testing data, PSD’s Pandemic Plan and information on response efforts made to safeguard the inmates, staff and public, visit the dedicated COVID-19 webpage at: https://dps.hawaii.gov/blog/2020/03/17/coronavirus-covid-19-information-and-resources/.

Toni Schwartz
Public Information Officer
Hawaii Department of Public Safety
Office: 808-587-1358
Cell: 808-683-5507
[email protected]
https://hawaii.gov/psd/
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/HawaiiPSD
Twitter: www.Twitter.com/HawaiiPSD