Staff Reports
Last Call — A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.
Ed. Note — Sunburn will be taking the day off tomorrow. Don’t worry, the morning read of what’s hot in Florida politics will return to your inbox Friday morning.
First Shot
Of the 2.7 million Florida children covered by Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program, 400,000 have enrolled since the pandemic public health emergency took effect.
Democratic members of Florida’s congressional delegation want assurances that the Gov. Ron DeSantis administration will do its best to ensure those 400,000 children don’t become uninsured when the public health emergency ends.
Led by U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, the representatives sent DeSantis a letter Wednesday saying they “are alarmed at the potential for hundreds of thousands of children in Florida to be disenrolled unnecessarily at the conclusion of the PHE and become uninsured.”
The letter also poses several questions including whether the state would make its plans for preventing disenrollment public.
The Georgetown University Center for Children and Families estimates that as many as 6.7 million children nationally could be disenrolled from Medicaid and CHIP when the public health emergency expires, and it says Florida children are among the most at risk.
The report says states can lessen the impact by adding more staff at eligibility and call centers, boosting funding for outreach and application assistance, and working with Medicaid-managed care organizations and health care providers to update contact information and remind their members that the state will be resuming eligibility redeterminations.
It’s not clear whether Florida is following any of the suggested recommendations in the report.
“It is critical that Florida begin making plans now to prevent a mass disenrollment of children from their health insurance at the conclusion of the public health emergency,” the Representatives wrote in the letter. “We look forward to working with you to meet our shared goal of keeping Floridians healthy and enrolled in high-quality coverage.”
Evening Reads
“What can parents, students expect from Florida’s K-12 testing overhaul?” via Sommer Brugal and Ana Ceballos of the Miami Herald/Tampa Bay Times
“Amazon Effect: The e-commerce giant is rapidly expanding in Florida. Here’s what it means.” via Clayton Park of The Daytona Beach News-Journal
“Ron DeSantis vs. Miami’s Archbishop, with Cuban Americans in the middle” via Patricia Mazzei of The New York Times
“Democrats praise birth control funding, but bemoan abortion restrictions” via Christine Jordan Sexton of Florida Politics
“Florida manatee deaths top 400 as state hopes warmth ends die-off surge” via Zachary T. Sampson of the Tampa Bay Times
“Addressing Congress, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy pleads for military aid” via Mike DeBonis of The Washington Post
“The limits of Zelenskiy’s emotional appeal” via Zack Beauchamp of Vox
“America needs a better plan to fight autocracy” via Anne Applebaum of The Atlantic
“Former Governors fill Ukraine messaging void as DeSantis stays quiet” via A.G. Gancarski of Florida Politics
“Women still face barriers in real estate investing, but some say that’s changing” via Trevor Fraser of the Orlando Sentinel
“Nassau names interim county attorney, debates next steps” via Wes Wolfe of Florida Politics
“The top-seeded men’s teams that could bust your bracket” via Santul Nerkar and Neil Paine
Quote of the Day
“The United States has the power to give Ukraine what it needs to win and ensure (Vladimir) Putin and his thugs personally feel the pain of this ruthless and unlawful invasion. We must use it.”
— U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
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