Florida

Florida's House Quits Early, At Impasse Over Medicaid Expansion

2:22pm April 29, 2015

Meanwhile, Gov. Rick Scott sued the federal government Tuesday, accusing it of coercing Florida to accept the expansion, or lose funding for other health programs for the poor.

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The city of Hollywood, Fla., bought the Homeless Voice shelter from its owner, a longtime advocate for the homeless who agreed to stay away from the city for the next 30 years.

National

Lowering A City's Homeless Population — By Forcing The Homeless Out

11:19am April 05, 2015

by Greg Allen

Officials in Hollywood, Fla., have long battled a controversial homeless advocate. Now they've bought his shelter — and made a deal for him and the homeless people who stayed there to go elsewhere.

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Latandra Ellington, 36, was serving time for tax fraud at Lowell Correctional Institution when she died.

National

Record Number Of Inmate Deaths Has Florida Prisons On The Defensive

6:27pm March 18, 2015

by Greg Allen

Many of the inmates died of natural causes, but a series of suspicious deaths — against the backdrop of a shrinking budget and staff shortages — has lawmakers calling for a prison oversight board.

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Florida Man's Facebook Post Against Employer In Emirates Leads To Jail

4:20pm March 06, 2015

by Krishnadev Calamur

While on vacation in the U.S., Ryan Pate called Abu Dhabi-based Global Aerospace Logistics "backstabbers" and described Arabs as "filthy." He was arrested upon his return. He faces 5 years in prison.

This black bear was spotted atop a tree in Tampa, Fla., on May 17, 2013. The bear population has been on the rise, so state wildlife officials are calling for a bear hunting season.

National

To Curb Bear Population, Florida Reinstates Hunting Season

6:39pm February 28, 2015

by Regan McCarthy

In the past decade, the number of bear-related calls Florida wildlife officials have received has increased by 400 percent. To stop the rise in bear population, officials have agreed to start hunting.

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In this photo taken Aug. 6, 2014, a manatee comes up for a breath of air at the Miami Seaquarium in Key Biscayne, Fla.

National

19 Stuck Manatees Rescued From Florida Storm Drain

5:21pm February 24, 2015

by Jackie Northam

The manatees swam into the warm waters of the drainpipe after a recent cold snap, but were unable to turn around to get out.

A federal grand jury in West Palm Beach, Fla., indicted Dr. Isaac Kojo Anakwah Thompson on eight counts of health care fraud last week.

Fraud Case Casts Spotlight On Medicare Advantage Plans

12:45pm February 16, 2015

by Fred Schulte

An indictment in Florida is likely to draw heightened scrutiny to potential billing fraud in privately run Medicare plans. It also raises questions about the effectiveness of government oversight.

A couple of male, genetically modified Aedes aegypti mosquitoes take flight.

Florida Health Officials Hope To Test GMO Mosquitoes This Spring

7:18pm February 12, 2015

by Greg Allen

The British firm that developed the strain of mosquito says it has already tested the insect in tropical countries and found it can reduce populations of disease-carrying mosquitoes by 90 percent.

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Politics & Government

What We Learned From Jeb Bush's E-Book

10:43pm February 10, 2015

by S.V. Dáte

The former Florida governor isn't technically a presidential candidate yet. But he released the first chapter of an e-book based on hundreds of thousands of emails he sent and received as governor.

Jose Ramirez and Mariana Silva speak in December with Yosmay Valdivia (right), an agent from Sunshine Life and Health Advisors, at the Mall of the Americas in Miami about plans available from the Affordable Care Act.

Florida Leads Insurance Sign-Ups, Despite Political Opposition To Overhaul

2:13pm February 02, 2015

by Phil Galewitz

With two weeks to go until the 2015 Obamacare enrollment deadline, Florida is ahead of even California, which has twice the population and embraced the Affordable Care Act from the start.