Dear Friends,
Happy New Year! We hope that each of you enjoyed a blessed and safe holiday season with your loved ones. 2020 was quite the ride and many things have not turned out the way we would like, but God is still good and we know that he is in control.
The second week of January brings our first week of committee meetings in the Florida Senate and we are excited to be back in Tallahassee on your behalf to advocate for the principles that we hold dear. Faith, Family, Freedom, Opportunity, and Life. These principles are worth fighting for and we will not quit.
We are very excited that we have won a big fight on behalf of Life in Florida. Just a few weeks ago, Ocala, Florida become the first city in the state to receive a Safe Haven Baby Box. This “box” or “bassinette” as we call it is located on the outside wall of a building such as a fire station or hospital, with one outside facing door for someone to place the infant in, and an inside door for staff or personnel to accept surrendered children under Florida’s Safe Haven Law. The device has a dual alarm system that activates once an infant is placed inside, and staff is required to periodically check the device and ensure that the alarm system is operable at all times. This will save lives and is one more tool to be used to help someone in distress who feels that they have no other option. The message that we can send with this is that we do care about every life, and every little baby deserves a chance to live. We are continuing to work on legislation to expand our safe haven law and promote these safety devices so that every community in Florida has this option. Every life matters and we can make a difference! Continue reading
The Ocala Chamber & Economic Partnership is pleased to welcome two new primary employers the local business community: ZT Polygel and Big Daddy Unlimited.
ZT Polygel
ZT Polygel LLC has signed a lease on a 55,000 sq. ft. facility in Ocala to allow the company to manufacture its industry leading algae-based organic polymers used in hand sanitizers and surface sprays which are the only polymers third party certified and FDA lab proven to sequester and kill COVID-19.
The Ocala facility located at 500 NW 27th Ave, will eventually employ 90 people and will begin limited operations before the end of the year. This is ZT Polymer’s second location in Florida and when fully operational will have the capacity to manufacture enough polymer to produce over 50 mm gallons per month of personal sanitizer products. ZT Polygel is used in its sister company’s line of sanitizer products under the VARIGARD™ name.
When ZT Polygel is used in any hand sanitizer formula, the patented polymers create a three-layer barrier of protection that lasts for more than two hours. Pathogens are sequestered in the middle layer, which does not allow the transfer of the germ to another individual or surface. ZT Polygel has been lab-proven at one of the country’s top COVID-19 testing labs.
To learn more about the unique attributes of ZT Polygel and its sister company VARIGARD™, visit them at www.varigard.com Continue reading
2019: Stay away from negative people. 2020: Stay away from positive people.
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The world has turned upside down. Old folks are sneaking out of the house & their kids are yelling at them to stay indoors!
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This morning I saw a neighbor talking to her dog. It was obvious she thought her dog understood her. I came into my house & told my cat. We had a good laughed.
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The nicest place to be is in someone’s thoughts, the safest place to be is in someone’s prayers, and the best place to be is in GOD’S hands.
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Poor Children of every color picked cotton. Open a book and read about the cotton plantations. Children worked in the cotton fields all day barefooted and they were of all colors white, black, all minority’s. Everyone worked to get the job done! Continue reading
Coffee n’ Cream
201 NE Cholokka Blvd.
Micanopy, FL 32667
352-466-1101
A nice Sandwich and Ice Cream Parlor. A perfect place after Antique shopping in Micanopy.
After walking through the little shops, my wife and I stopped for lunch. We ordered drinks and their specialty, Chicken Salad Sandwich served with a bag of chips. We sat outside on the porch, where they had an acoustic guitar musician as live entertainment.
It’s a good place to rest after hours of standing and shopping. If you use the facilities, there’s a voluntary septic fee request. There’s only two food establishments in town. Continue reading
With the New Year upon us, many people, including me, are happy to say good riddance to 2020! Moving forward, the Lady Lake Police Department would like to remind you to check around your home to ensure that all alarms, monitors, and detectors are in good working condition. These include your smoke detector and carbon monoxide detector. It’s a good idea to change the batteries in these detectors every year. You may want to have them replaced if you have not done so within the past 10 years.
It should come as no surprise that carbon monoxide deaths are the highest in winter. Cold weather increases the use of gas-powered heating or portable heaters using a fuel source. Homeowners should be aware of the symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning, especially those that use natural gas as a heat and cooking source. These symptoms include feeling dizzy, light headed, and/or nauseated.
It’s a good time to remember the following safety tips to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning. Here are some tips from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):
- Have your heating system, water heater and any other gas, oil or coal-burning appliance inspected and serviced by a qualified technician every year.
- Install battery-operated carbon monoxide detectors on every level of your home.
- Don’t use a generator, charcoal grill, camp stove or other gasoline or charcoal-burning device inside the home, garage or outside the home near a window.
- Don’t burn anything in an unvented stove or fireplace.
- Turning on an oven whether gas or not is not safe.
- Use electric space heaters with automatic shut-off switches and non-glowing elements. Make sure to keep them away from any flammable materials, like curtains or blankets. Never leave children unattended near a space heater. Check the cords on the heater to make sure that they are not damaged.
- Check with your local fire department if you want to use a space heater that uses a fuel source such as kerosene.
- Don’t let a vehicle idle inside a garage attached to a house, even if the garage door is left open. Carbon monoxide will build up and will put you at risk of serious illness or even death.
If a carbon monoxide detector sounds, leave your home immediately and call 911 from outside. Seek prompt medical attention if you suspect carbon monoxide poisoning and if you or someone in your household is feeling dizzy, light-headed or nauseated. The same goes for a smoke detector. Your safety is more valuable than any property.
On December 16, 2020, in News Releases, by Staff
Tallahassee, Fla. – Today, Governor Ron DeSantis announced the State of Florida’s initial distribution plan for Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine.
Florida is preparing to receive 367,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine next week, pending Emergency Use Authorization by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Doses of the Moderna vaccine will be distributed to 173 hospital locations that did not receive doses in the first allocation of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine. These hospital locations span 43 counties. Find the full list at www.flgov.com.
The state is able to distribute this vaccine to a large number of hospitals as the Moderna vaccine does not require ultra-cold storage.
Governor DeSantis has issued regular video updates on vaccine distribution in Florida, which can be found at www.youtube.com/c/GovernorRonDeSantis/videos
Floridians are also encouraged to opt-in to receive updates about the COVID-19 vaccine via text. Floridians can receive these text updates by texting FLCOVID19 to 888777.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—Attorney General Ashley Moody’s Office today announced Operation Income Illusion, a nationwide crackdown on scams that target consumers with false promises of income and financial independence. The impact of these scams has intensified this year as scammers take advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic and financial crisis to exploit jobseekers. Attorney General Moody is joined by the Federal Trade Commission and other federal, state and local law enforcement partners in Operation Income Illusion.
Highlighted in the nationwide crackdown is Attorney General Moody’s action against FirstUSA Business Development Inc—filed last month in Pinellas County. The complaint filed against FirstUSA alleges that the company induced consumers through telemarketing calls to purchase business coaching products and services, supposedly designed to help consumers start or improve a home-based internet business, but resulted in some consumers losing thousands of dollars without earning the profits promised or, in some instances, not even receiving the products or services. The defendants marketed these services to consumers in Florida and across the country.
Attorney General Ashley Moody said, “Income scams prey on people who find themselves in financially vulnerable situations, such as a sudden loss of employment or imminent retirement with inadequate funding. With high unemployment and the ongoing financial impact brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, more and more people are looking for innovative ways to make ends meet, making them more susceptible to income scams. Sadly, these scams produce the opposite results for income seekers—instead of gaining a paycheck, they lose money. I am proud to work with our federal and state partners to actively identify, investigate and stop these schemes in Florida and nationwide.” Continue reading
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—Attorney General Ashley Moody’s Office of Statewide Prosecution today secured a 20-year prison sentence for a child sexual predator. Ryan Harding pleaded guilty to attempted sexual battery on a child under the age of 12 and several counts of possession of child pornography, among other charges stemming from his Aug. 28, 2018 arrest. Harding’s lengthy prison sentence will be followed by five years of sex offender probation. Harding will also have to register as a sex offender for the remainder of his life.
Attorney General Ashley Moody said, “The abuse and exploitation of a child is an act of pure evil. It is incredibly disturbing and heartbreaking to learn of victims going through years of this form of physical and psychological torture. I am proud of my Statewide Prosecutors for securing a lengthy prison sentence in this case. I hope this will bring some peace of mind to the victim as the healing process continues.”
According to a June 2017 report filed with the St. John’s County Sheriff’s Office, between 2013 and 2017, Harding sexually molested a child who was between the ages of 11 and 14 during the time period of abuse. The sexual battery reportedly occurred in multiple counties, namely Citrus, Lake, Marion and Miami-Dade. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigated the case due to the multiple jurisdictions.
Harding pleaded guilty to one count of attempted sexual battery on a child under 12 years of age, 13 counts of possession of child pornography, one count of promoting a sexual performance by a child, one count of transmission of materials harmful to minors and one count of use of a two-way communications device to facilitate the commission of a felony. Julie Sercus with the Attorney General’s Office of Statewide Prosecution prosecuted the case.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—Attorney General Ashley Moody is taking action to claw back money owed to Florida’s Medicaid Program. Following a multistate investigation into Royal Pharmaceuticals LLC and Seton Pharmaceuticals LLC, Attorney General Moody and a bipartisan group of attorneys general from across the country secured more than $10 million for the states’ Medicaid programs. The nationwide investigation found that the two jointly-held pharmaceutical companies underpaid Medicaid drug rebates to all 50 states from 2013 to 2017.
Florida’s Medicaid program will receive more than $4 million through efforts by Attorney General Moody and other state attorneys general.
Attorney General Ashley Moody said, “For years these pharmaceutical companies shortchanged Florida’s Medicaid program—hurting the integrity of the taxpayer benefit and shortchanging Floridians. I am proud of the work of my Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the team of attorneys general who worked together to stop it and secure millions for our states’ Medicaid programs.”
In July 2018, Royal and Seton self-reported an error in the companies’ Medicaid Drug Rebate Program data to the North Carolina Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. As part of the MDRP, drug manufacturers are required to pay rebates to state Medicaid programs for each of the company’s drugs that are covered by Medicaid. From September 2013 to January 2017, Royal and Seton inadvertently, yet inaccurately, reported the market date data element that is part of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ calculation of each drug’s rebate amount. Continue reading
This month, I issued a Consumer Alert warning Floridians about COVID-19 vaccine product and distribution scams. With news that thousands of doses of coronavirus vaccines will be heading to Florida soon and consumers anxious to achieve immunity, scammers may exploit the situation to rip-off Floridians.
Once doses arrive, the swift and orderly distribution of the vaccine will be key to getting our state and country back on track.
With that said, I am asking all Floridians to be on the lookout for vaccine-related scams and report fraud. Scammers may try to exploit the sense of urgency surrounding the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine to swindle those trying to protect their health.
The following tips can help Floridians avoid COVID-19 vaccine-related scams:
- Seek vaccine-related information from trusted health care professionals and government officials;
- Do not respond to solicitations about vaccines;
- Never send money or financial information to anyone offering a COVID-19 vaccine or claiming the ability to expedite the process; and
- Report suspicious solicitations or COVID-19 vaccine-related advertisements to my office by calling 1(866) 9NO-SCAM or visiting MyFloridaLegal.com.
To view the latest alerts and to stay up-to-date on COVID-19 related scams, visit our Consumer Alert webpage by clicking http://www.myfloridalegal.com/newsrel.nsf/newsreleases
By keeping a watchful eye out for scammers and following the advice of trusted health care professionals, we will get through this pandemic and build a Stronger, Safer Florida.
