Ruben Juarez Articles
New MauiWES Study Published in JAMA Psychiatry
A new study led by UHERO’s Ruben Juarez has been published in JAMA Psychiatry. The article finds mental health consequences of wildfire exposure, housing displacement, and income disruption following the 2023 Maui wildfires impacting residents inside and outside of the burn zone. This cross-sectional study shows wildfire exposure and its socioeconomic consequences are associated with […]
Read MoreMental health impacts of Maui wildfires extend beyond burn zone
A new study published in JAMA Psychiatry finds that the mental health impacts of the Maui wildfires extend beyond the burn zone. In this cross-sectional study of 2,453 adults, residents within wildfire burn zones had a 53% higher risk of depression and 67% higher risk of anxiety compared with unexposed individuals, with suicidal ideation not […]
Read MoreNearly $800K awarded to support MauiWES
Hawaiʻi Community Foundation and Kaiser Permanente have committed nearly $800K in funding to support the Maui Wildfire Exposure Study (MauiWES). “‘This support allows us to keep showing up for the Maui community over the long term,’ said study co-lead Ruben Juarez, professor at the UH Economic Research Organization (UHERO). ‘The willingness of residents to participate […]
Read MoreUHERO’s Ruben Juarez to Present at 1st Annual LA Fires Research Conference
UHERO’s Ruben Juarez and Alika Maunakea of the John A. Burns School of Medicine will present at the 1st Annual LA Fires Research Conference, sharing lessons from Maui and examining the broader national implications for wildfire-related health research on the first anniversary of the LA wildfire.
Read MoreRecovery Through a Disability Lens: Impacts of the 2023 Maui Wildfires on Disability Equity and Shared Prosperity
By Daniela Bond-Smith, Ruben Juarez, and Alika Maunakea The August 2023 Maui wildfires devastated homes, disrupted livelihoods, and reshaped entire communities. For many Maui residents with disabilities, life after the fires has been an uphill climb. This report draws on two large-scale surveys conducted between 2024 and 2025 to document how the disaster and its […]
Read MoreEnduring Impacts of the November 2021 Red Hill Fuel Spill: Health, Social, Economic, and Trust Implications
By Leah Bremer, Tara Sutton, Conrad Newfield, and Ruben Juarez This report presents findings from a follow-up survey conducted in July 2023—about 20 months after the Red Hill water contamination—with 174 people who had participated in earlier CDC/ATSDR studies. The study examines how the disaster affected participants’ health, daily life, finances, and trust in government […]
Read MoreNew MauiWES Study Published in JAMA Network Open
A new paper in JAMA Network Open, a journal of the American Medical Association, led by Dr. Ruben Juarez, Dr. Alika Maunakea, Dr. Daniela Bond-Smith, and the MauiWES team at the University of Hawai‘i, highlights both the challenges and the resilience of communities impacted by the 2023 Maui wildfires. The study, which followed over 1,100 […]
Read MorePublication: Rural health disparities: Evidence from Hawaiʻi
This article examines how rurality contributes to health disparities in the Hawaiian Islands using data from the June 2023 wave of a statewide health survey. We analyze self-reported health outcomes alongside sociodemographic factors including age, gender, race/ethnicity, income, education, and disability. Our findings show that rurality is one of the strongest predictors of poorer health […]
Read MoreFrom Crisis to Recovery: Health and Resilience Two Years After the Maui Wildfires
By Ruben Juarez, PhD, Alika Maunakea, PhD, Krit Phankitnirundorn, PhD, Binh Le, PhD, Carl Bonham, PhD, Daniela Bond-Smith, PhD, Marsha Lowery, ND, Chris Knightsbridge, PsyD, Samia Valeria Ozorio Dutra, PhD RN, Martina Kamaka, MD, and Pauli Amornkul, MD Research support by Rafael Peres David, Keeton Krause, Braden Kunihiro, Quan Zhang, Noelle Rubas, Amada Torres Salazar, […]
Read More