Feed Flagler, the community-wide effort to provide meals for the needy (or anyone who requests one) at Thanksgiving, is off to its 6th year, with renewed emphasis on food collection for families.
poverty
Tin Man Veto: Gov. Rick Scott’s 4-Year War on Legal Aid for the Poor
Owing to Scott, Florida is one of only four states that don’t spare a penny either from appropriations or earmarked court fees for legal aid. New York provides $56.8 million. Even in Texas there’s $6.26 for every estimated person in need.
Unemployment Down, Food Stamps Use Up, Pointing to Recovery’s Bane: Underemployment
The overall U.S. unemployment rate has steadily declined since the recession officially ended in June 2009. But many Americans still are finding it hard to get by, even if they do have jobs. A key indicator of economic hardship—enrollment in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly known as food stamps—is higher in every state than it was five years ago, even though unemployment has dropped in every state during the same period.
With Marco Rubio’s Walmart Mentality, Republicans ‘Discover’ How to End the Poverty They Created
The Tea Party GOP has declared Lyndon Johnson’s “War on Poverty” a failure. And with the 2014 elections looming, Rubio-Republicans are trying to remake themselves as sympathetic and empathetic, instead of apathetic, to the plight of the poor and the middle class, writes Stephen L. Goldstein.
He Won’t Give Up: Scott Taking Drug Testing of State Employees to U.S. Supreme Court
Lawyers for Scott filed a petition this week asking the Supreme Court to hear the case, after the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last year ruled against across-the-board drug testing, but various groups blasted the Scott administration for continuing to pursue the drug tests. They pointed to repeated past rulings against such drug testing.
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.
Gov. Scott Now 0-For-4 on Drug-Testing as Federal Judge Harshly Criticizes Violation of Welfare Recipients’ Rights
In a harshly worded, 30-page opinion, the judge concluded that “there is no set of circumstances under which the warrantless, suspicionless drug testing at issue in this case could be constitutionally applied.”
In Wealth of Heart, Flagler County and Palm Coast Firefighters Fulfill Christmas Wishes of 58 Children
Flagler County Fire Rescue’s Station 92 Sunday was transformed into a Christmas giveaway station for some 58 children thanks to county and Palm Coast firefighters who’d donated their own money and time to make it possible. The event was organized by firefighter Kyle Lockwood.
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.
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.