Florida lags most of U.S. in residents with health insurance
Florida ranks fourth in the U.S. for its percentage of people under 65 without health insurance: 13.9%, according to new Census Bureau data. That's a big improvement over 2006, when 24.9% of Floridians were uninsured — but still well above the national uninsured rate of 9.5%. [Source: Axios]
Abortion numbers drop after Florida's 6-week ban takes effect
More than 40,000 abortions had been reported this year in Florida as of Aug. 1, but the number being performed is down after a law took effect preventing abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, according to newly released state data. The data, posted on the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration website, showed 40,499 abortions reported this year as of Aug. 1. [Source: News Service of Florida]
Are there bedbugs and busted equipment at your Florida hospital? What inspectors found
Bed bugs. Broken equipment. Staffing challenges. Fewer patients. And a pile of hazardous waste. These are just some of the problems spotted by patient care ombudsmen during visits to Florida hospitals owned by Steward Health Care System and now up for sale. [Source: Miami Herald]
OneBlood returns to normal distribution to hospitals following cyberattack
OneBlood, Florida’s primary blood distributor, says it is operating normally again, less than two weeks after a ransomware attack took down the nonprofit’s computer network. “OneBlood is processing and distributing blood products to the more than 250 hospitals we serve at a normal output,” Susan Forbes, the nonprofit’s senior vice president of corporate communications and public relations, said. [Source: Health News Florida]
Free nonemergency telehealth visits available for Floridians affected by Debby
Free telehealth care is being offered to Floridians living in areas affected by Hurricane Debby by the virtual health care company Teladoc Health. This service can assist for people who may no be able to get an appointment with their primary care physician due to home displacement or medical offices being temporarily closed due to the storm. [Source: WGCU]
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
› Can a pill thwart a brain gene mutation? A $7.7M grant helps a Jupiter institute find out
A research institution at the center of northern Palm Beach County's biotech industry has received a $7.7 million federal grant to develop medicine to help people with brain disorders. The Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute for Biomedical Innovation and Technology received the grant from the National Institute of Mental Health in April.
› Underserved East Gainesville gets its first urgent care. Residents call it a 'start'
The University of Florida’s medical network runs nine emergency and urgent care facilities in Gainesville. But UF Health Urgent Care Center Eastside, on Hawthorne Road near the Lincoln Estates and Lincoln Heights neighborhoods, will be the first east of Main Street.
› Urgent care or ER? With ‘one-stop shop,’ Jacksonville hospitals offer both under same roof
Facing an ultracompetitive market in Jacksonville, one of the nation’s fastest-growing cities, the University of Florida Health System is trying a new way to attract patients: a combination emergency room and urgent care center. In the past year and a half, UF Health and a private equity-backed company, Intuitive Health, have opened three centers that offer both types of care 24/7 so patients don’t have to decide which facility they need.
› Overdose-related deaths are down in Florida but not in Tampa Bay
According to a report by Project Opioid, overdose-related deaths in Florida are at their lowest point since 2018. That’s the good news. The bad news is that several counties in the Tampa Bay Area actually saw an increase in overdose deaths.