Legislative update: Pharmacists bill DOA, House refuses fracking, Nazis rule on free speech
I updated our legislative blog today with three issues. The bill that would have allowed Pharmacists to test for flu or strep is DOA. When I first wrote it I did say it would never happen. Doctors would never allow this because it stomps on their right to diagnose. We still have an issue. There should be a better way than making patients go to ER’s or even the doctors office where they are infecting patients. A strep throat especially in a child needs to be treated immediately. Flu is a virus. Strep is a bacteria. Is there is one common sense thing we could do to actually give good care and save dollars etc? Maybe doctors under their orders could send out Home health nurses. Much less money and saves that trip to the ER, urgent care and or doctors office.
“A BILL THAT WOULD HAVE LET PHARMACISTS TEST AND TREAT FOR THE FLU OR STREP INFECTIONS DIED YESTERDAY IN A STATE SENATE COMMITTEE MEETING, AFTER COMPLAINTS FROM DOCTORS THAT PATIENTS WOULD SKIP DOCTOR’S VISITS. SENATOR JEFF BRANDES – A REPUBLICAN FROM ST. PETERSBURG – SPONSORED THE BILL THAT WOULD HAVE LET PHARMACISTS GIVE PEOPLE A BASIC SWAB TEST FOR FLU OR STREP THROAT AND PRESCRIBE TREATMENTS LIKE TAMIFLU – WITHOUT THE PATIENT SEEING A DOCTOR. DOCTORS SAID THAT IT WOULD LEAVE SOME PATIENTS AT RISK IF THEY HAD COMPLICATIONS THAT A PHARMACIST COULD NOT TREAT. ”
The House is refusing to schedule any sort of hearing or vote to ban fracking.
A UNANIMOUS VOTE TO BAN FRACKING BY THE ENVIRONMENTAL PRESERVATION COMMITTEE IN THE FLORIDA SENATE. OPPONENTS SAY IT’S A THREAT TO THE WATER SUPPLY AND GAIL DICKERT WITH THE FLORIDA FEDERATION OF GARDEN CLUBS SAYS FRACKING IS A DANGER TO PUBLIC HEALTH.
THE FRACKING BAN HAS MORE THAN ENOUGH VOTES TO PASS THE FLORIDA SENATE BUT HOUSE LEADERS REFUSE TO SCHEDULE ANY SORT OF A HEARING OR PUBLIC VOTE.
Nazi’s could win on our college campus
“The Education Committee in the Florida Senate approves a bill to ban “free speech zones” at state college and universities. Senator Dennis Baxley says the entire campus is supposed to be a free speech zone.
The United Faculty of Florida and the ACLU oppose the bill because it would allow controversial speakers to sue the college or university if students disrupt their presentation.”
Florida legislators hate “suing” for medical malpractice but seem ok to take away the free speech rights of college students who pay good money to go college so that evil nazi boys can have free speech.
Maybe this ok in Ocala but it’s not ok for the rest of us.
Senator Dennis Baxley, said after the 14 died at the Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills that they were “old anyway.”
“Look at the population,” said Baxley, “You‘re dealing with 90-somethings. Some of these deaths would naturally occur, storm or no storm.”
He added: “Eventually everyone who was in that nursing home will die. But we don‘t need to attribute those all to the storm and bad policy.”
Baxley is also a funeral home director.
When will our legislators start looking after the people of Florida?
