FDLE Wants Money For Crime Labs
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is asking for almost $8 million from the state legislature for its crime labs. Half of that money is to keep crime lab employees from leaving.
View ArticleHealth Department Estimates Cost Of Possible Medical Marijuana Program
The Florida Department of Health laid out how much a new medical marijuana program could cost Monday. The agency would oversee the program if voters approve it under a possible 2016 ballot measure.
View ArticleCommission On Healthcare and Hospital Funding Meets In Fort Myers
Gov. Rick Scott’s Commission on Healthcare and Hospital Funding met at Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers on Tuesday. The governor said the commission wants to protect taxpayers from what he...
View ArticleManatee County Agencies Pressured By Rising Opioid Use
Opioid deaths in Manatee County are on track to double by the end of the year. County officials believe this spike is the result of Florida’s crack down on pill mills. Now, users are turning to heroin...
View ArticleCongressman Files Bill To Help Citrus Industry
A Florida Congressman filed a bill recently that expands tax incentives for citrus growers. The bill has bipartisan support from Florida House members and industry stakeholders. They hope it will keep...
View ArticleState Picks Medical Marijuana Nurseries
The Florida Department of Health announced Monday which five nurseries will participate in the state’s first medical marijuana program. This is a step toward getting the program up and running, since...
View ArticleLee Memorial Updates Policies For Uninsured Care
The Lee Memorial Health System is changing its policies for providing free and discounted medical care for the area’s uninsured. The policy shift moves the hospital group into compliance with...
View ArticleLegislative Preview: Medical Marijuana
This year’s legislative session will look at a number of bills involving medical marijuana. The state created an outline for its initial medical marijuana industry in 2014. It allows for the production...
View ArticleLocal Company Develops Medical Hemp Patch
Hear the audio version of this story. A Sarasota-based medical marijuana company is developing a patch containing a chemical compound from the cannabis plant. The company – Alternative Medical...
View ArticlePETA Targets Monkey Facilities Over Zika Concerns
Hear the audio version of this story. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals or PETA recently launched a campaign warning Hendry County residents that local primate breeding facilities could be a...
View ArticleScientists Study Gene In Ringling Elephants That Fights Cancer
Researchers are looking into a new way to fight cancer. Their source weighs thousands of pounds, has four legs and a trunk. They’re elephants, and they rarely get cancer. The Ringling Brothers and...
View ArticleLee Memorial Reduces Number Of Regular ER Visitors
Lee Memorial Health System is reducing the number of people who regularly use its emergency rooms.Treating regular ER visitors can be costly for the hospital, and the sign of a larger problem for the...
View ArticleLee Memorial Works To Reduce Malnutrition Locally
Lee Memorial Health System wants to expand a program that targets malnutrition. Malnutrition is poor health caused by eating unhealthy foods or just not eating enough. Malnourished patients are more...
View ArticleState Holds Brownfields Symposium In Sarasota
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection hosted a brownfields symposium this week in Sarasota. Brownfields are sites considered to be “environmentally contaminated.” The state wants to spread...
View ArticleStudy Finds Florida Has Fifth-Highest Income Inequality In America
Florida ranks fifth for income inequality in the country, according to a study recently published by the Economic Policy Institute . It looks at the gap between what the top 1 percent and what the...
View ArticleSen. Rubio: U.S. Senate Considering Everglades Projects
U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-FL, was in Fort Myers on Monday discussing solutions for the Lake Okeechobee water crisis. The lake’s freshwater releases have caused damage to both coasts, including the...
View ArticleEnvironmental Groups Sue To Stop Oil And Gas Exploration In Big Cypress Preserve
Multiple environmental advocacy groups are suing the National Park Service in federal court to stop oil and gas exploration in the Big Cypress National Preserve . They’re concerned about how this will...
View ArticleIn Florida's Medical Marijuana Rollout, A Parent Who Would Not Wait
Florida’s medical marijuana program took too long to start for the parents of some sick children. Hear Gail tell their story in her own words:
View ArticleElections 2016: Candidates and Advocates Make Lake Okeechobee’s Water A Major...
Coffee-colored water gurgles near the W.P. Franklin Lock and Dam . It flows down the Caloosahatchee River, roughly 30 miles from Fort Myers.
View ArticlePlanned Parenthood Offers Services To Transgender Patients
Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida is expanding its services for transgender people. It will now offer hormone replacement therapy for those who want to transition genders. This will...
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