Tropic Care health services are offered by the U.S. military’s Innovative Readiness Training program, as part of a joint-service training mission funded by the Department of Defense. According to the program’s mission statement, its goal is to “produce mission-ready forces through military training opportunities that provide key services for American communities.”

A similar program was offered on Maui in 2013. “Maui Tropic Care is a very exciting mission for us,” said Lt. Col. James Jones of the Alabama Air National Guard’s 187th Medical Group and officer in charge of Maui Tropic Care 2018. “It is an opportunity where members of the Air National Guard, Air Force, Army, Navy Reserve and Marine Corps Reserve can train together in a real world setting while at the same time helping the local communities. The training will help to prepare us for future deployments.” More than 350 soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines will arrive on Maui County and provide no-cost health services from Aug. 11 to 19 at six locations in the county. The clinics will open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., except for the last day Aug. 19 when the clinics need to close early at 11:30 a.m.

The locations are: Mitchell Pauole Center, Kaunakakai; Lanai Gymnasium, Lanai City; old Hana School Cafeteria, Hana; St. Theresa Church, Kihei; Waiola Church, Lahaina; and University of Hawaii Maui College, Kahului.

Services offered include:

• Physical exams, schools sports physicals (must bring school forms) and blood pressure and health screenings.

• Dental exams, extractions and fillings.

• Vision screenings and eye-wear prescriptions. Single-vision eyeglass fabrication will be available on Maui for later pickup. Eyeglass fabrication is subject to stock on hand; no eyeglasses based on outside prescriptions will be filled.

The free services do not require proof of residency, income, insurance or ID.

Tropic Care patients will be seen on a first-come, first-served basis and each patient can only be seen for one service (medical, dental or vision) a day. Clinic organizers recommend that patients arrive as soon as possible during clinic hours to secure a same-day service time.

“I encourage anyone who needs to get some basic medical, dental or vision services to come out and get some help while Tropic Care is here,” said Maui County Mayor Alan Arakawa. “Tropic Care was here in 2013, and we had a lot of people stand in line for the DOD’s health care services all over Maui, as well as Lanai and Molokai.”

The county, state Department of Health, Maui Economic Opportunity, Maui United Way, Coalition for a Drug Free Lanai and Pulama Lana’i are assisting the Department of Defense with promoting the event, finding volunteers for clinic operations as well as providing materials, equipment, manpower and other support services.

Local sponsors include Maui Health System, HMSA, Na Hoaloha ‘Ekolu, Maui Electric, Goodfellow Bros. Inc. and the Maui Quarantine Fund of the Hawaii Community Foundation. For more information about Tropic Care or to volunteer for a clinic, go to www.mauicounty.gov/1933/Tropic-Care-2018. The Maui Tropic Care 2018 Facebook page is available at www.facebook.com/tropiccare2018/ with a Facebook event page at www.facebook.com/events/204845513703358/.