By the end of January, nearly 300,000 Floridians had enrolled in a new health plan through Obamacare — a surge that left most other states in the dust, despite state officials’ opposition to the Affordable Care Act and the relative scarcity of helpers available.
Health & Society
5 Years After 7-year-old Gabriel Myers’s Suicide, Psychotropic Drugs Still Overprescribed in Foster Care
At the time, about 5 percent of all U.S. children were treated with psychotropic medications, but in Florida’s foster care system, 15.2 percent of children received at least one such medication. Of these, more than 16 percent were being medicated without the consent of a parent, guardian or judge. Not much has changed.
Stand Your Ground: Florida is Not My Castle. And It’s Not Yours, Either.
The right to stand one’s ground against aggression in one’s home is unquestioned, but, argues Julie Delegal, in public, spaces must be shared, peacefully. The castle doctrine cannot be extended to cover the entire state, as Florida’s Stand Your Ground law does.
How Obamacare’s Enemies Turned a Victory For Workers’ Freedom Into a “Job Killer”
The prediction that Obamacare will lead to the equivalent of 2.5 million fewer jobs has nothing to do with businesses cutting the workforce and everything to do with workers being finally free of job-lock, now that they don;t need to stay in a job to have health insurance. That’s a good, and very American, thing, not the job-killing catastrophe Obamacare’s enemies make it out to be.
Ignoring PTSD Crisis at Home: Americans Shot and Stabbed In Their Own Neighborhoods
Americans with traumatic injuries develop PTSD at rates comparable to veterans of war. Just like veterans, civilians can suffer flashbacks, nightmares, paranoia, and social withdrawal. But Americans wounded in their own neighborhoods are not getting treatment for PTSD. They’re not even getting diagnosed.
The Diagnosis
FlaglerLive Editor Pierre Tristam learned he had cancer over the holidays. He describes the experience and his travels since, mostly down and up the abyss that becomes a premier tourist spot for many of those coming to grips with the diagnosis, even though death row appears, in his case, a very long way off.
Florida Lawmakers Would Stiffen Penalties On Insurers Discriminating Against Gun Owners
Insurance companies could face tougher penalties if they impose higher rates, refuse to issue or cancel auto or homeowner policies due to gun ownership, under a measure backed by a House committee Tuesday.
Healthy Families and Other Children’s Programs Could Benefit From Scott’s Election-Year Budget
Scott’s proposed budget includes an additional $7 million for Healthy Families Florida, a program that reduces child abuse and neglect, and $3.6 million for Early Steps, which screens the youngest children for disabilities and delays, the better to catch them at the earliest and most correctable.
In Major Shift, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Now Urges Fix, Not Repeal, of Obamacare
In 2010, the Chamber got behind a major business lawsuit to fight it at the U.S. Supreme Court. Now, in a striking about-face, the chamber says the Affordable Care Act is here to stay and should be worked on, not repealed.
Scott Pitches Cut of Sales Tax on Rental Properties and $80 Million for Cancer Research
Scott will ask lawmakers to support a $100 million reduction in the commercial lease tax that now brings in about $1.4 billion a year, and $60 million to existing cancer centers as they seek National Cancer Institute designation.
Supreme Court Clears Medical Marijuana Pot Proposal; Floridians Vote On It November 4
In a significant victory for advocates of the initiative, a divided Florida Supreme Court on Monday ruled 4-3 that the wording of the proposed constitutional amendment to legalize medical marijuana passes legal muster and can now appear on the November election ballot, giving Floridians a direct say. Polls have shown a 3-to-1 majority of Floridians favoring legalization.
Hendry County, With Highest Uninsured Rate in Florida, Sees Little Impact From Obamacare
Thirty-five percent of Hendry County’s 33,000 residents under 65 lack health insurance, but nearly a month after the health law’s expansion of coverage began, local health officials say little has changed for most uninsured residents.
Virulent Flu Season Aside, Potent RSV Bug Is Taking a Toll on Florida Children
Respiratory Syncytial Virus, or RSV, is serious and highly contagious. There’s no vaccination around to keep your little one from catching it. And its seasonal duration is longer in Florida than in any other state, stretching from mid-August to March.
Medical Marijuana Initiative Gets Needed Signature to Make November Ballot, Pending Court Clearance
With 710,508 validated signatures statewide in Florida— 27, 359 more than the required 683,149 — and reaching signature requirements in the bare minimum of 14 congressional districts, People United for Medical Marijuana beat a Feb. 1 deadline for submitting petitions to the state.
Fulfilling Pledge, Rep. Travis Hutson Files Animal Cruelty Bill Inspired By FPC Student
Animal abuse may cost abusers far more in penalties and punishment if a bi-partisan bill inspired by Flagler Palm Coast High School student Morgan Purtlebaugh and filed by Rep. Travis Hutson last week becomes law.
California Sharply Improves Regulatory Oversight of Assisted-Living Facilities
The wide-ranging array of proposed regulations would mandate annual inspections of the facilities and increase the size of financial penalties that the state can levy for failures in care. The proposals would also step up mandatory training for assisted living employees, require facilities to employ registered nurses in some instances and demand that California post inspection results online for the public to review.
Obamacare’s Popularity Overwhelms Florida Blue as System Crashes, Costing Enrollees
Many who signed up and paid Florida Blue for their new plan between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31 say the insurer has lost them in its computer system. Now, when they go to the doctor or try to get a prescription filled, they have to pay the bill themselves or cancel.
Marijuana Legalization: A Dissent
We can all recite the arguments for legalization of marijuana. But making marijuana available to anyone over the age of 21 seems to me to be a sad statement of societal surrender, rather than an uplifting event, argues Steve Robinson.
Again Breaking a Pledge, Children’s Advocacy Center Sets Ultimatum On Rape-Crisis Intervention as Top Cops Scramble
The Children Advocacy Center’s promise in July to provide rape-crisis exams to adults in Flagler and Volusia counties turned out to be relatively hollow, and was followed by an ultimatum that the CAC would get out of the business altogether by June, triggering a furiously critical response from State Attorney R.J. Larizza, Sheriff Manfre and other local top cops.
14 For ’14: What Will Command
Florida’s Attention This Year
From the governor’s race to the economy to gambling to common core and the continuing battles over health care, here are some of the issues that will dominate the political landscape in the year ahead, some of which focusing the nation’s eyes on Florida yet again.
Florida Hospital Flagler CEO: State Must Extend Medicaid to Working Poor
The Florida Legislature still has the opportunity this year to draw down $51 billion in federal dollars already sent to Washington to help pay the cost of health insurance for those who cannot afford it, argues Floridfa Hospital Flagler CEO Ken Mattison.
Volusia-Flagler Non-Profit Hosting Annual Eating-Disorder Symposium on Feb. 15
COPE–Community Outreach for the Prevention of Eating Disorders–is hosting its annual public health symposium for education, awareness and prevention of eating disorders, Saturday, Feb. 15, at Renew Yoga Studio at 220 S. Beach Street in Daytona Beach.
Despite Florida’s Resistance, A New Era Of Health Insurance Begins for Millions
Thousands of previously uninsured Floridians woke up Wednesday morning with peace of mind for the first time in years. More than half of Florida’s nearly 4 million uninsured are projected to qualify for coverage through the Marketplace. Another million would qualify if the Florida Legislature would permit it.
Obamacare Dilemma:
High Deductibles vs. “Huge Fear”
Going without insurance “is like gambling,” says a 43-year-old social worker. But the high deductibles of Affordable Care Act plans make them a hard sell, as the plans sold on the exchange are not as generous as employer-sponsored insurance.
Yes, That Too: Your Employee-Provided Health Insurance Costs Are Going Up in 2014
The new year will likely bring higher deductibles and co-payments, penalties for not joining wellness programs and smaller employer contributions toward family coverage, but Obamacare isn’t entirely to blame: it is only accelerating pre-existing conditions.
Marijuana Use Barely Up, Synthetic Drug Use Sharply Down, Along With Other Narcotics
The use of synthetic marijuana products and bath salts dropped sharply in 2013 among students in middle and high school as students increasingly see the products as dangerous, according to the most authoritative annual drug and alcohol survey, with marijuana use up slightly but most other drugs showing declines.
Longing For Stormin’ Norman: How Obama’s Smugness Is Crippling His Leadership
There are leaders out there. The Obama administration administration has let us down by failing to find them. As a result, the task Barack Obama has left himself is to convince us that the Affordable Care Act is a winner, not a clunker.
Pam Bondi’s Pot Problem
It’s a matter of time before marijuana is legalized, for medical uses or not, even in Florida. But Attorney General Pam Bondi is doing her best to preserve a prohibition that relies on disinformation to benefit cops and jails at the expense of greater safety, less crime and more compassion, were marijuana to be legalized.
Medical Marijuana Tangles Up Florida Supreme Court Justices In Weeds of Words
The idea of medical marijuana technically isn’t at issue in the case. Instead, Attorney General Pam Bondi, legislative leaders and medical, law enforcement and business groups argue that the ballot title and summary that would appear on the ballot could deceive voters about the scope of the amendment.
Another Obamacare Surprise: Married Couples Not Eligible For Subsidies Given Single Filers
For middle class married couples who don’t have children, the subsidy cutoff is $62,000. If one spouse makes $30,000 and the other $40,000, they are ineligible for a subsidy when combined. But if they were just living together, each would be eligible for a subsidy.
Medicaid Gap: A Reporter Who Covers Obamacare But Doesn’t Qualify For It
The Supreme Court allowed states to opt out of the Medicaid expansion under Obamacare, as Florida did, but the law didn’t include subsidies for people in those states who earn less than the federal poverty level to buy coverage through the exchanges. They were supposed to be covered under Medicaid. And Medicaid is not there for them.
Palm Coast Couple Charged With Aggravated Child Abuse After Neglecting Broken Arm
Authorities learned that the couple allegedly had cruel means of disciplining the 3-year-old boy, including dousing the child in cold water for napping when he wasn’t supposed to, sitting the child by the front door, as punishment, for 10 to 60 minutes, “and twisting [the child] into a pretzel with legs behind [his] head, causing pain to the groin area,” according to the arrest report.
With 3 Weeks To Go, Consumers Fear Ending Up Without Health Coverage On New Year’s
The next three weeks are critical for consumers keen on getting health coverage as soon as the health law allows it on Jan. 1. People who desire coverage by then need to sign up in the new marketplaces no later than Dec. 23. Consumers can still enroll up to the end of March, but their coverage will begin later.
Despite $51 Billion For the Taking, Florida Unlikely to Expand Health Coverage in 2014
Consumer groups, hospitals and insurers are clamoring for Florida to take the $51 billion in federal funds that have been offered to the state over the next decade to provide health coverage to the working poor. But those who are tuned in politically — even those who desperately want it to happen — say it’s very unlikely in 2014.
Fire Demolishes House in Painter’s Hill and Jumps A1A to Island Estates Before It’s Stopped
A fire that started at about 3:15 this afternoon in a vacant, two-level house at 3518 North A1A, in Painter’s Hill, was fueled by 40 mph winds off the ocean and had quickly engulfed the structure in flames by the time firefighters arrived at the scene.
Republicans Fret as Motor Voter Law
Meets Obamacare
Twenty years ago, Congress passed a controversial law requiring states to allow people to register to vote when they applied for driver’s licenses or social services. That same law is bringing voter registration to the health insurance marketplaces, and again, it is expected to result in legal fights as Republicans fear it will drive up Democratic registrations.
Obamacare Will Survive. Obama and Democrats, Maybe Not So Much.
The law’s rocky debut has refocused attention on whether Obama, intellectually gifted though he may be, was ready to be the country’s chief executive. It may also decide which party is in control after 2016.
“Punishment Therapy” For Depression? A Lake Worth Doctor Is Accused of Torturing a Patient
Dr. David Simon, a Lake Worth family doctor accused of sadistic “punishment therapy” that involved handcuffs, blindfolds, whips and other implements of torture apologized repeatedly to the Board of Osteopathic Medicine, but that was not enough to persuade board members that Simon could safely continue to practice.
Only 3,600 Floridians Enroll in Affordable Care Act’s First Month; Obama Accepts Blame But Questions Abound
Only 3,571 people have successfully enrolled in a private insurance plan in Florida in the first month of the Affordable Care Act’s federal marketplace. The target was 33,400, resulting in a success rate of just 11 percent, though 3.8 million Floridians are without health insurance.
Troubling Scene of 1 and 2 Year Old Soiled and In Road Leads to Neglect Charges Against Mom
Josie-Lynn Walters, 22, a resident of Espanola, was arrested on two counts of child neglect–a third-degree felony–after her children were found wandering unsupervised and in soiled underwear for over an hour near a busy intersection as Walters slept at home.
Popular and Consumer-Driven Provisions Fuel Sticker Shock of Obamacare Premiums
When setting premiums for next year, insurers baked in bigger-than-usual adjustments, driven in large part by a game-changing rule: They can no longer reject people with medical problems. It’s the double-edged sword of Obamacare–a crucial provision that comes with sticker shock for some.
Report Blisters DCF Over Abused Children’s Deaths as Florida Lawmakers Vow to Act
Florida’s recent series of child-abuse deaths took center stage at the Capitol on Tuesday, as a report blasted the state child-welfare system and as both chambers of the Legislature signaled they would craft bills to address the system’s shortcomings.
Florida Blue Says It Never Dropped 300,000 Customers, Only Their Current Insurance Plans
It’s a distinction that some Florida Blue members have a hard time seeing — especially when the new plan costs more and offers benefits they don’t necessarily want. Older, sicker people who had a harder time finding health insurance in the past because of pre-existing conditions welcome the change.
School District, County’s Largest Employer, Starts Health Clinic Experiment With Florida Hospital Flagler
The $288,000 annual contract with Florida Hospital Flagler’s Prompt Care Clinic will allow 1,400 of the school district’s 1,700 employees to seek out primary care at no cost, but with some restrictions. The district hopes it will lower the annual increases in premiums that employees and taxpayers have been bearing.
Too Young for Medicare, Too Old for Medicaid, and Neglected By Affordable Health Act
While most of the uninsured will be able to get subsidized health coverage Jan. 1 under the Affordable Care Act, the poorest adults under 65 will be out of luck in many states, including Florida. Many are women in their 50s and 60s, too old to have children still at home so they can’t qualify for Medicaid. But they’re not yet 65 so they don’t qualify for Medicare, either.
Pantry Alert: Cuts in Food Stamps Benefits Will Affect 3.6 Million Floridians Staring Nov. 1
Florida’s food hardship rate is more than 21 percent, meaning that one in five Florida households reported that in the past year they struggled to buy enough food for the family. The state is one of the hardest-hit for food security.
Attorney General Wants Florida Supreme Court To Bump Off Medical Marijuana Referendum
In a filing required because the group pushing the initiative has triggered an automatic review by the high court, Bondi wrote that the ballot language could deceive voters about the extent of marijuana use that would be allowed, a claim the measure’s proponents reject.
Beyond Rebecca Sedwick’s Suicide: Colleen Conklin Campaigns for More Cyberbullying Awareness
More laws, mandates and prohibitions won’t work, Flagler County School Board member Colleen Conklin says, but more current awareness of the variety of online apps and social sites, where cyberbullying thrives, and more responsibility from both teens and their parents, are more likely to stem a pattern of bullying-induced teen suicides.
Your Policy Is Cancelled: Insurers End Coverage That Falls Short of Affordable Care Act
The main reason insurers are cancelling policies offer is that they fall short of what the Affordable Care Act requires starting Jan. 1. By all accounts, the new policies will offer consumers better coverage, in some cases, for comparable cost — especially after the inclusion of federal subsidies for those who qualify.
Congressman Ron DeSantis: A Tea Party Fanatic Who’s Earned His Walking Papers
Ron DeSantis, who represents Flagler County, is not interested in governance. A standard-issue tea party reactionary, he’s a saboteur. He derails, with self-righteous bombast and distortions. He is part of the suicidal extremists willing to plunge the country in default over Obamacare, rather than fight to amend it legislatively. He should pay the price of his recklessness.