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Associated PressMay 26, 2016

Florida has received less than half of the special traps it has ordered to help detect the Zika virus in mosquitoes, and nationwide the only U.S. distributor of the traps has a backlog of almost 1,950 orders from governments and private businesses, officials said Thursday. State workers in Florida had ordered more than 300 of […]

Associated PressApril 25, 2016

The number of children showing up to school with their required shots is dropping according to the Florida Department of Health. New data sent to the state’s 67 school districts on Friday showed that nearly 93 percent of kindergarten students and 90.6 percent of seventh-graders had their required immunizations this year. The department stated that’s […]

Jim RosicaApril 7, 2016

Jennifer Tschetter, an attorney who was most recently Chief Operating Officer of the Florida Department of Health, is joining Tallahassee’s Hopping Green & Sams law firm to specialize in “health care law matters,” the firm announced in a press release. Tschetter leaves the department after state Surgeon General John Armstrong was forced out of his job. The Florida Senate […]

Staff ReportsMarch 31, 2016

Floridians now have an online tool to report unlicensed health care providers, fraud, health violations and more. The Department of Health is providing a “new and improved” health care complaint portal, www.flhealthcomplaint.gov, developed with the Agency for Health Care Administration. “The enhanced portal serves as an example of successful collaboration between the Department and other entities across the state to ensure […]

Staff ReportsMarch 28, 2016

The Florida Department of Health is pushing back on a report by the Tampa Bay Times this past weekend that says health department had removed hundreds of HIV cases from the books. The newspaper found that the department’s division of disease control lowered the number of HIV cases from 6,147 to 4,613 in 2014. The […]

A.G. GancarskiMarch 11, 2016

Gov. Rick Scott appointed Celeste Philip as Acting Surgeon General on Friday. He also praised outgoing Surgeon General John Armstrong as having done an “outstanding job.” Armstrong was the first state agency head in 20 years to be shown the door after the Senate refused to confirm him by the end of the 2016 Legislative Session. Scott […]

Staff ReportsMarch 9, 2016

Senate President Andy Gardiner on Wednesday all but slammed the door on state Surgeon General John Armstrong‘s chances of getting confirmed this session. That would make him the first state agency head in two decades to be rejected by the Senate. Asked whether a vote on Armstrong’s confirmation would come to the Senate floor, the Orlando Republican told […]

Jim RosicaMarch 7, 2016

The same week that the Senate confirmation chances of its secretary – Surgeon General John Armstrong – continue dangling by a thread, the Florida Department of Health issued a news release in advance of an upcoming HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. Armstrong has been criticized for, among other things, the state’s overall growing rate of HIV/AIDS. Thursday is the 11th […]

Jim RosicaFebruary 29, 2016

The Rick Scott-led PR campaign to confirm Dr. John Armstrong as the state’s surgeon general and Secretary of Health continues apace. As of Monday, Scott’s press shop and that of the Health Department had sent out at least 20 ICYMI emails (“in case you missed it”), with a different individual or organization encouraging the Florida Senate to confirm […]

Diane RobertsFebruary 15, 2016

Sunday was Valentine’s Day. And what did those sweethearts in the Legislature give to the ladies of Florida? A swift kick in the ovaries. Rep. Charles Van Zant’s HB 865 would shut down all abortion clinics, urge the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade, and make abortion a felony. Zygotes are citizens, too. […]

Tag: Florida Department of Health
Rob Ferl, image via University of Florida.

Nationwide backlog of traps to detect Zika virus

Rising number of Florida children skipping out on shots

Jennifer Tschetter leaves Health Department for Hopping Green

State of Florida launches “health care complaint portal”

Health department responds to Tampa Bay Times report on changes to HIV stats

Rick Scott appoints Celeste Philip Acting Surgeon General, lauds outgoing John Armstrong

The latest: John Armstrong likely out at Health

John Armstrong burnishes anti-HIV cred amid confirmation doubts

PR campaign for John Armstrong confirmation in high gear

Diane Roberts: Legislators celebrate Valentine’s Day by working to limit women’s options