University of Hawaiʻi researchers received a $2.2 million NIH grant to continue a multi-year study on the long-term health and well-being effects of the 2023 Maui wildfires. The next phase will survey 1,200 Maui residents, including displaced survivors, to shape future disaster recovery and public policy.
- The NIH grant funds the next phase of the Maui Learnings to Overcome Adversities (MLOA) study, building on initial research completed over the past three years.
- A 2025 JAMA study from the first phase found that wildfire-related mental health impacts — driven largely by housing displacement and income loss — spread across all of Maui, not just burn zones.
- Researchers will survey 1,200 adults who lived on Maui during the fires, including those who were displaced, over the course of this new phase.
- Findings are intended to inform public policy, emergency response planning, and health services both in Hawaiʻi and nationally.
- Results may influence how recovery resources and community support programs are structured for displaced residents still rebuilding their lives.
Source: Bigislandnow
Share this article
