Join the Registry
Join the Registry
Join the registry

Frequently Asked Questions

The purpose of the Red Hill Registry is to monitor the health of people exposed to the Red Hill water crisis over time and provide resources for those who experienced by the Red Hill fuel spill. The Registry will use data from questionnaires to monitor the health of the exposed population, such as by counting the numbers of health outcomes that this exposed population has experienced. We will also provide educational materials to the community, public, and specifically to healthcare providers. This Registry serves as a vital tool for researchers and medical professionals to begin to understand whether there are links between jet fuel exposure in the drinking water and long-term health consequences. We are also hoping that the Registry will facilitate a sense of community and belonging.

The Red Hill Registry is an independent health Registry funded by a five-year, $27.2 million federal cooperative agreement. Funds were secured from the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) and are administered through the Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine on behalf of the National Center for Disaster Medicine and Public Health at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. The Red Hill Registry has been developed independently from DoD and University of Hawai‘i (UH) System Office of Strategic Health Initiatives manages the daily operations of the Registry.

Eligibility for the Red Hill Registry is designed to include individuals who were potentially exposed to the jet-fuel-contaminated water from the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam water distribution system, also called the Navy water line. This includes residents, workers, and those who attended schools or daycares served by the affected water system during the contamination period, whether or not they experienced health effects following exposure. We will invite all individuals who were potentially exposed to fill out a preliminary Pre-enrollment Questionnaire that will ask questions about exposure timing and location of exposure. An individual may then be invited to fill out additional questionnaires after the initial questionnaire or may be asked to provide information to be contacted to complete questionnaires at a future date.

  • The first step toward enrolling in the Red Hill Registry is to fill out the Pre-enrollment Questionnaire. A button for this questionnaire can be found on the Red Hill Registry website’s homepage at RedHillRegistry.org. To complete the Pre-enrollment Questionnaire now, please click here.
  • If you would like to receive updates from the Registry, you may sign up with your email address here.

Participating in the Registry is voluntary. After consenting, if you choose to enroll in the Registry you will be asked to provide personal information, including contact details, demographics, residential history, and exposure pathways and durations. There will also be questions asking about detailed health information, including medical history, current symptoms, and any diagnosed conditions. In the future, you may also be asked to complete additional questionnaires. The aim is to gather a comprehensive health profile to accurately assess potential impacts of the fuel contamination. If desired, Registry community engagement specialists may assist enrollees through our community resource referral platform, Unite Us.

  • The privacy and security of your data are extremely important to us. Any information gathered by the Registry about you (or your child) will be kept confidential. Information that identifies you (or your child) will not be shared without your consent unless we are required by law to disclose information.

  • In rare cases, we may be required to reveal confidential information related to safety. We are required to report suspected cases of child abuse, or if you tell us you are planning to cause serious harm to yourself or others, or if we reasonably believe you are a threat to yourself or others.

  • Data collected by the Registry will be encrypted on password-protected servers and computers. Certain members of the Red Hill Registry team will have access to this information; specifically, this team includes staff from University Health Partners of Hawaiʻi (UHP), the organization that is housing the Registry’s Information Technology (IT) team and community engagement specialists. All Red Hill Registry workers are required to receive training in ways to keep information secure.

  • We will do our best to make sure that the personal information gathered from you is kept private. We have taken multiple steps to protect your information by using password protected systems with physically secured servers.

  • The Registry has been assured by the Henry M. Jackson Foundation (the funder of the Red Hill Registry or Sponsoring Agency) that no Federal employees will possess, access, or view individual participant data. The Sponsoring Agency’s rights are primarily intended to ensure project completion. The Sponsoring Agency would exercise data rights in the unlikely event that UH is unable to complete the project due to default or other unforeseen circumstances. However, in such a scenario, the Sponsoring Agency would facilitate a direct data transfer from UH to a new, qualified research entity to ensure Registry continuity, and only then would the Sponsoring Agency exercise its rights to permit the transfer. The protection of participant privacy and confidentiality of their data is the shared intent of UH and the Sponsoring Agency. Both entities will adhere to all applicable regulations and ethical guidelines regarding data security and handling. Any information that is published about people in the Registry will not identify you. 

The fuel contamination from Red Hill has raised concerns about a range of potential health effects. These may include acute symptoms like headaches, nausea, and skin irritation, as well as long-term effects such as respiratory problems, neurological disorders, and increased cancer risk. Research is ongoing to fully understand the extent of these potential health impacts. As a data repository, receiving your consent to enroll in the Red Hill Registry enables the Registry to play a key role in studying and documenting these potential effects.

After consenting to enroll in the Red Hill Registry, the data collected will be used to assess the prevalence of health issues, conduct epidemiological studies, and identify potential links between exposure and specific health outcomes. This information will inform public health initiatives and medical research. The goal is to provide a strong scientific basis for addressing the health concerns of those who experienced the Red Hill crisis.

No, the Registry is not able to provide direct medical care or monetary compensation. Rather, the Registry will provide resources, education and a means for collecting information that can be used to assess potential links between exposure and health impacts.

Enrollment into the Red Hill Registry began in July 2025 and is currently funded through May 2029. In general, registries are most useful when they are able to collect data over a long period. Therefore, we will plan for the Registry to be a long-term project and will continue to apply for additional funding to maintain data collection. Receiving your consent to enroll in the Registry will allow investigators from UH and beyond to have the ability to request data (without identifying information, such as name or date of birth) to investigate links between exposure and outcomes. Thus, research studies will be conducted as data becomes available. Information from the Registry will be made available to Red Hill community members and the public in the form of group reports. Your name will not be connected with your answers. Information may be shared with researchers and be published or presented at professional meetings. The timeline for specific studies and reports will depend on the volume of data and the complexity of the research.

The most reliable and up-to-date information regarding the Red Hill Registry, including enrollment procedures, eligibility criteria, research progress, and any related announcements, can be found on this website (www.RedHillRegistry.org). Additional background information has been provided by the University of Hawai‘i Red Hill Information Hub at: https://redhill.hawaii.edu/. It is also advised to follow official announcements from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Defense Health Agency-Public Health, Environmental Protection Agency, the State of Hawai‘i Department of Health, and Board of Water Supply.