Florida News Straight From the Source
Tomorrow, March 24, Governor Rick Scott will attend the “A Rick Case Habitat Community” celebration event in Pompano Beach.
WHAT: “A Rick Case Habitat Community” Celebration Event
WHEN: 12:30 PM
WHERE: Hopewell Missionary Baptist Church
900 NW 15th Street
Pompano Beach, FL 33060
Tomorrow, March 24, Governor Rick Scott will announce February jobs numbers at Florida-headquartered retailer Bealls Inc.
WHAT: Jobs Numbers Announcement
WHEN: 10:00 AM
WHERE: Bealls, Inc.
E.R. Beall Center
700 13th Avenue East
Bradenton, Florida 34208
WHAT: The televisions debut of the documentary “Camp Blanding: Florida’s Hidden Gem From the Beginning”
WHEN: 8 p.m., Thursday, Mar. 23 2017.
WHERE: WJCT Channel 7-1 / Comcast Channels 8 or 440
This short documentary gives viewers a modern day high tempo view of the current training and capabilities of this little known post. It also provides a rustic historical telling of how the post came into being, its ties to Naval Air Station Jacksonville, the Empire State Building, and German POW’s.
Some of the people who appear in the movie worked at Camp Blanding as teenagers, trained there before entering World War Two, were held as German POW’s, and one woman who was born there, tells the story of her father who worked in the post hospital as a doctor.
The original movie was written, directed and produced by Mr. A.J. Artley. The extended version to air on local television was co-produced by Mr. Artley and WJCT Producer, Mr. Carlos Bouvier.
Contributors: Col. Matt Johnson, Commander, Camp Blanding Joint Training Center
Mr. Greg Parsons, Historian, Camp Blanding Museum
Doctor George Cressman, Historian, Camp Blanding Museum
Tomorrow, March 21st, Governor Rick Scott will attend National Guard Day at the Capitol and present Veterans Service Medals to Florida veterans.
WHAT: National Guard Day Ceremony
WHEN: 11:30 AM
WHERE: Florida State Capitol Courtyard
400 South Monroe Street
Tallahassee, FL 32399
As part of a unified grassroots effort across the State of Florida, join Elizabeth McCarthy and partners including ACLU of Central Florida, League of Women Voters of Central Florida, Greater Orlando NOW, as well as others to support the Helen Gordon Davis Fair Pay Protection Act (Florida SB 410/HB 319). Please join us on March 14 at 11:30 AM at Orlando City Hall for a press conference on equal pay for equal work.
Sponsors of these bills include Senator Linda Stewart (D-Orlando), Representatives Berman (D-Lake Worth), House Minority Leader Janet Cruz (D-Tampa), Abruzzo (D-Boynton Beach), Baez (D-Coral Gables), Davis (D-Jacksonville), Geller (D-Aventura), and Mercado (D-Orlando).
Named the “Helen Gordon Davis Fair Pay Protection Act” in recognition of her hard work in the field of equal pay, the bill hopes to strengthen state laws in this arena. If enacted, the bills would specify which factors employers could use to decide to pay employees differently, such as education or experience based on seniority or merit, and would prohibit employers from screening job applicants based on prior wages. It would also bar employers from taking retaliatory action against an employee who discloses their wages to a coworker and prohibits employers from discrimination towards employees based on their sex or gender identity.
Who: Elizabeth McCarthy, ACLU of Central FL, League of Woman Voters of Central Florida, Greater Orlando NOW
What: Press Conference to Support Equal Pay for Equal Work
When: March 14th, 2017 – 11:30 am Press Conference/Rally
Where: Orlando City Hall, 400 S Orange Ave, Orlando, FL 32801
Tomorrow, March 10th, Governor Rick Scott and Commissioner Adam Putnam will give an update on the Collier County wildfire at the Collier County Emergency Management facilty.
WHAT: Update on Collier County Wildfire
WHEN: 9:00 AM
WHERE: Collier County Emergency Management
8075 Lely Cultural Pkwy
Naples, FL 34113
Attorney General Pam Bondi will convene this year’s first meeting of the Statewide Council on Human Trafficking today, March 9, at 1:00 p.m. in Tallahassee. The 15-member council, chaired by Attorney General Bondi, builds on existing state and local partnerships working to make Florida a zero-tolerance state for human trafficking. Members of the council include law enforcement officers, legislators, prosecutors and experts in health, education and social services.
WHO: Attorney General Pam Bondi and members of the Statewide Council on Human Trafficking
WHEN: Thursday, March 9, 1:00 p.m.
WHERE: Cabinet Meeting Room
The Capitol, LL-03
Tallahassee, Fla.
To view the meeting agenda, click here.
For more information on the Statewide Council for Human Trafficking, visit MyFloridaLegal.com.
Governor Scott is meeting with House Speaker Paul Ryan and members of Congress today and tomorrow in Washington, D.C. on healthcare. Tomorrow morning, March 9th, he will be available to media to discuss his trip to D.C.
WHEN: 9:00 am
WHERE: Russell Senate Office Building Rotunda – 3rd floor
Washington, D.C.
Led by U.S. Senator Bill Nelson (D), Florida’s congressional delegation this week called on federal regulators to delay a Medicare demonstration that could jeopardize access to Medicare-funded home health care services for Florida seniors.
In a letter to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price, 27 members of the congressional delegation called for replacement of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS) Pre-Claim Review Demonstration (PCRD) with a “more effective program integrity initiative that better targets fraud.”
PCRD was announced by CMS in June 2016 and requires an intermediary to pre-approve payment for Medicare home health services. Florida is one of five states selected by regulators to participate in the mandatory program. Following implementation in Illinois in August 2016, Medicare home health agencies have widely reported challenges navigating the program’s requirements, including:
Senators Nelson and Marco Rubio previously sent a letter to federal regulators last fall, which successfully resulted in the delay of PCRD from going into effect on October 1, 2016.
“Lawmakers from both parties representing urban, suburban and rural districts spanning from the Panhandle to Key West signed on to the letter, demonstrating a united front before federal regulators that Pre-Claim Review is a costly, burdensome and ineffective demonstration,” said Kyle Simon, director of government affairs and communications for the Home Care Association of Florida (HCAF). “HCAF and its members are encouraged by the show of support by our federal representatives, and cautiously optimistic that a delay will be granted by HHS Secretary Price.”
“The home care community in our great state has been saddled with just about every initiative that policy makers in D.C. have dreamed up,” said Anthony Clarizio, president of HCAF. “From aggressive audits to reimbursement-related programs Value-Based Purchasing, and now with the Pre-Claim Review Demonstration looming large on the horizon, the level of scrutiny on home care is unparalleled, and no other state has had to contend with it as much as Florida.”
Nearly 350,000 Medicare beneficiaries across Florida depend on home health services provided by 1,124 Medicare agencies every year.
Founded in 1989, the Home Care Association of Florida is a 501(c)(6), not-for-profit, statewide trade association representing Florida’s home care industry. For more information, visit HomeCareFLA.org.
