Assignment 5A: Identifying Local Opportunities

#1) “Gov. Ron DeSantis, Florida legislature not addressing Medicaid shortfalls, health advocates say” by Jeffrey Schweers of The Gainesville Sun

https://www.gainesville.com/news/20200130/gov-ron-desantis-florida-legislature-not-addressing-medicaid-shortfalls-health-advocates-say

·       Medicaid in Florida has shortfalls

·       Unemployed individuals cannot get healthcare from Medicaid

·       Florida Senate passed a bill expanding Medicaid a few years ago, no support in the house

·       Currently, cuts are being proposed to Medicaid in Florida, which would affect the four-million people that rely on it

·       3000 older Floridians died due to this gap

The Problems: Possible cuts to Medicaid would leave millions of people without proper healthcare.

The People: Older Floridians, the children of low-income families, disabled individuals and pregnant women

#2) “High-Priority Violations: Alachua County restaurant inspections (Jan. 20-25) by The Gainesville Sun Staff” https://www.gainesville.com/photogallery/LK/20200129/PHOTOGALLERY/129009984/PH/1

·       This article features restaurant inspections from January 20-25

·       The Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation is responsible for these reports, many of which will disturb you

·       The Hilton University of Florida Conference Center received five high-priority violations

Raw meat was stored above ready-to-eat food, which can cause cross contamination

·       Cross contamination can cause an upset stomach, nausea, and diarrhea and other food poisoning consequences

·       Additionally, the salad-bar did not have a sneeze-guard window, which would have helped prevent the transmission of disease

·       The Samurai Japanese Steak House and Sushi Bar also stored uncooked meat above ready-to-eat food

·       These two restaurants could have caused serious illness, just imagine eating sneezed on salad

The Problems: Many restaurants in Alachua county are not upholding safe food cooking and storing standards. These violations in basic restaurant code could lead to serious illness for unsuspecting customers.

The People: The residents of Alachua county

#3) “Earthquake off Jamaica felt in Florida” by Michael Williams of WPTV

https://www.wptv.com/news/state/earthquake-off-jamaica-felt-in-florida

This brief article discusses what happened in Miami on January 28^th. An earthquake that occurred off the coast of Jamaica caused hundreds of office workers to be evacuated from high-rise buildings in Miami. Generally, Floridians have to prepare every year for hurricane season. This earthquake is a change from what Florida has experienced in the last few years. However, in this age of climate change, global warming, global cooling, or whatever you prefer to call it, it is important to be mindful that the climate of the world is constantly changing. This change is not always a good one, much like what happened in Miami. This creates a great business opportunity. If earthquakes begin to become more frequent near Miami, the city government may require new building codes, which savvy builders can take advantage of.

The Problem: Climate change is hitting Miami, and it is not a great change. Instead of facing hurricanes every year, people in Miami and Florida may have to prepare for earthquakes.

The People: Floridians, homeowners, business owners

#4) “UF Health monitors rumors of coronavirus spreading to Gainesville” by Hannah Phillips of The Independent Florida Alligator https://www.alligator.org/news/uf-health-monitors-rumors-of-coronavirus-spreading-to-gainesville/article_69a9b1a0-426c-11ea-86b2-87354e5a2a4e.html

·        The City of Wuhan, China was quarantined last week. However, five million of the residents of the city are unaccounted for as of today

·        Currently, UF Health is monitoring the situation but is not worried: “We will not be concerned until we know there’s a confirmed case.”

·        The rumor spread from a popular Chinese social media app called WeChat

·        A message on WeChat said that a UF parent flew to Wuhan over the winter break for the New Year

·        The UF International Center also identified four people who traveled from China in the last two weeks. None of them traveled specifically to Wuhan

·        As the number of infected across the world continues, people will continue to get more worried

·        For example, the Chinese Student Association has canceled its Spring Festival

·        Interviewed students stated they were happy the event was put off due to fear of spreading the virus

The Problem: There is a rumor at the University of Florida that the virus is already here. Students are worried about the possibility of catching the virus by going to class.

The People: University of Florida student, professors, Gainesville residents

#5) “Chicago woman infects husband with coronavirus, first human-to-human spread in US” By Julian Crews of WGN9 News

https://wgntv.com/2020/01/30/chicago-woman-infects-husband-with-coronavirus-first-human-to-human-spread-in-us/

There is significantly troubling news coming from Chicago. As of January 30^th, the first human-to-human spread of the Coronavirus has just occurred in the United States, specifically in Chicago. Before the event, the only people sick with the disease were people who had traveled from China to the United States. Health officials are saying currently that there is “no local emergency.” However, this could turn into a huge problem. Once a person catches the virus, they can spread the disease for 14-days until symptoms appear. Currently, there are over 10-thousand people infected with the Coronavirus.

The Problem: The Coronavirus is continuing to spread. The first human-to-human transmission of the disease has taken place in the United States.

The People: The people of Chicago, Americans, doctors, nurses.