Florida News – Highlights from around the state – February 19th
Bottom Line: Your daily recap of the some of the biggest news from around the state that impacts you in South Florida.
- Amazon.com is cutting delivery services with Express Parcel Service as they continue to ramp up their own delivery service statewide. 267 jobs will be cut at Express statewide with the largest cuts coming in South Florida.
- The new Agricultural Commissioner inspection stickers, minus Nikki Fried’s photo,are being rolled out at gas pumps statewide. The initial inspection stickers were deemed to be a potential violation of the use of official state business for campaign purposes.
- 43,000 home insurance customers of Anchor Property and Casualty Insurance will be moved to Homeowners Choice Property and Casualty Insurance effective April 1st. The state stepped in and forced the transaction based on a credit downgrade at Anchor.
- The Florida Department of Health said while Floridians have been tested for the coronavirus, they can’t disclose how many or who the individuals are due to patient privacy rights. Recently the CDC disclosed the test kits provided to the state had the potential to produce “inconclusive” test results. Meanwhile Tampa General Hospital’s administrative staff said the traditional flu remains a bigger threat for Floridians.
- The VA is emphasizing virtual, or tele healthcare, is now available for Florida’s veterans. A first of its kind VA operation called the Clinical Contact Center is available virtually 24/7. The center opened last year to service vets across our state, the Caribbean and South Carolina. According to the VA, greater than 99% of the healthcare needs of vets that have used the Clinical Contact Center had their needs met without having to visit a VA office.