Hawaii Board of Trustees
Within the last decade, the U.S. Census Bureau has continued to take great strides to ensure adequate representation of Native Hawaiian issues among their various data products. For the first time in history, individuals could select more than one race for Census 2000. This meant more accurate counts for Native Hawaiians, who could now be separated from the category, “Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander” (NHOPI) by being counted as Native Hawaiian alone or in combination with other races. According to the U.S. Census 2000 data, there are approximately 401,162 Native Hawaiians in Hawaii and on the continent. In the State of Hawaii alone, there are over 239,655 Native Hawaiians, representing 60% of the total population of Native Hawaiians in the United States. Population forecasts suggest that while the Native Hawaiian population continues to steadily increase, the population of Native Hawaiians in Hawaii is slowly decreasing due to the increasing cost of living and limited economic opportunities. Along with the U.S. Census Bureau, the State of Hawaii Department of Health also plays a crucial role in measuring the vital statistics of Native Hawaiians through birth, death, and marriage data collected by the Office of Health Status Monitoring (OHSM). Other data collection methods such as the Hawaii Health Survey (HHS) and Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) allow the Department of Health to provide race specific estimates regarding the prevalence of chronic conditions, general health, and risk factors associated with chronic conditions for Native Hawaiians and other ethnicities in Hawaii. While the data is far from perfect, the U.S. Census Bureau, in conjunction with various state agencies and Native Hawaiian organizations, continue to work together to ensure better success in greater sampling coverage of the Native Hawaiian population to help increase resource leveraging and research purposes.
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