“As pediatricians, when we treat children, we’re not just healing their injuries and illnesses. Far too often, we’re also trying to treat symptoms of a system that’s failing Hawaii’s families,” local pediatricians Dr. Michael Ching and Dr. Brooke Hallett wrote in the Star-Advertiser on October 24, 2021.

“At our offices and in our hospitals, we see more than stomach aches and broken bones. We see the face of hunger, the suppressed pride of the unhoused, and the scars of missed opportunities. Through no fault of their parents and families, the children we care for were born into a society that simply doesn’t prioritize their needs and well-being. …

“Congress now has the chance of a generation to right these wrongs and give children — our country’s future — the resources they need to live healthy, productive lives. Transformative federal legislation called the Build Back Better Act would create today’s equivalent of a New Deal for children and families.”

Click here to read the full opinion piece or download a PDF.