Sunburn — The Morning Read Of What’s Hot In Florida Politics — 3.3.22

By Peter Schorsch    

Good Thursday morning.

With the legislative budget process doing its annual dance toward resolution, lawmakers have a unique opportunity to save lives and tax dollars in a single positive move. Best of all for legislators, at a time when almost nothing can bridge the political divide, 89% of Florida voters support the idea, according to a recent survey.

The Mary Brogan Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program have been saving lives for over 20 years by providing early detection of these potentially fatal diseases. The five-year survival rate for breast cancers diagnosed early is 99%. However, during the pandemic, screenings have fallen by 87%.

The Mary Brogan Program has been incredibly effective at reaching women whose circumstances make them less likely to get screened, including low-income residents and minority communities. Still, the program can reach only 8% of eligible Floridians at its current funding level.

The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network is pushing the Legislature to increase that funding to $3 million — a fairly small amount by legislative standards, but enough to meaningfully expand the program’s capacity to save lives.

An analysis of the Mary Brogan Program found that every dollar spent on breast and cervical cancer screenings and diagnostic tests results in twice that in cost savings. Lawmakers are now being reminded that every cancer among low-income residents that’s detected and treated early means one less patient who avoids costly later-stage treatments, which are often paid for by taxpayers.

These benefits are not lost on Florida voters. A recent survey found that 89% of them — including more than 4 out of 5 Republicans — support expanding funding for a program that provides free breast and cervical cancer screenings to low-income women.

The program’s patients love it. The voters love it. We’ll find out whether the Legislature shares the feeling in the next week or so.

___

Americans for Prosperity-Florida announced Thursday that longtime deputy director is leaving the Sunshine State to run its Mississippi chapter.

Starla Brown has been a part of the AFP-FL team for over eight years, serving as its operations manager and grassroots director before being promoted to the No. 2 spot at the libertarian-conservative advocacy group three years ago.

The promotion sets up a homecoming for Brown, who hails from the Magnolia State. She is set to begin her new job after Florida’s Legislative Session ends.

“In each of her roles, Starla has served our organization and the people of Florida with tireless dedication,” AFP-FL State Director Skylar Zander said. “I’m confident she’ll lead the Mississippi chapter of AFP toward tremendous success, ultimately empowering residents across the state.”

In a news release announcing Brown’s departure, AFP-FL said she “has demonstrated her commitment to advancing policies aimed at breaking down barriers to individual success.”

Zander lauded Brown for her dedication to advancing AFP-FL’s priorities, especially during the numerous Legislative Sessions on the team.

AFP-FL has not yet selected a replacement for Brown and is encouraging persons “interested in advocating for long-term solutions to our state’s and country’s most pressing issues” to apply for the position online.

___

Newly rebranded HCA Florida Healthcare shows up ‘every day’ — HCA Florida is launching a statewide advertising campaign to introduce its new branding to patients and communities statewide. The campaign appears across TV, digital, social, radio, print and unique “out of home” placements, and celebrates how HCA Florida colleagues show up for patients every day so they can live life to the fullest. HCA Florida is uniting more than 450 affiliated care sites — including hospitals, physician practices, and other facilities across the state — to create a connected and collaborative health care experience. HCA doctors and colleagues are here when and where you need them throughout Florida — from their family to yours.

For more info, visit the new website here.

— SITUATIONAL AWARENESS —

—@DKThomp: Reviewing the military and economic updates, my biggest concern right now is that (Vladimir) Putin has been so utterly destroyed in the economic/cultural/geopolitical arena that he feels his only means of face-saving redemption is decisive military victory.

—@RyanStyruk: New COVID-19 statistics via @CNN: Omicron peak: 807,849 cases/day Right now: 62,331 cases/day; Omicron peak: 160,113 hospitalizations Right now: 41,944 hospitalizations

—@OKnox: Holy ever-lovin’ …”Data for January was revised higher to show 509,000 jobs were added instead of 301,000 lost as initially reported” ??? That’s not a mild “miss.”

—@JoshuaKarp: Bizarre: Ron DeSantis just attacked France as too weak to fight Putin. Let’s be clear: French weapons are fighting Putin right now in Ukraine. Why does DeSantis take every chance to undermine our allies? Why is it so hard to support Ukraine?

—@NateMonroeTU: people who know DeSantis from his North Florida days understand this well, and it hasn’t changed despite a concerted PR effort to convince people otherwise: he is icy, dour, has zero charisma, makes no effort to form meaningful relationships, and is a wooden public speaker.

—@GovGoneWild: My take: @ArdianZika > @JoeBiden on Ukraine

—@LMower3: The Florida Senate is honoring Sen. @JeffreyBrandes, who is term-limited. A fighter for prison and criminal justice reform, property insurance, and common sense, he’s one of the few Republicans in the Legislature to buck his party up here. An example of the cost of term limits.

—@MDixon55: Spencer Roach on the House floor going to bat for the rights of Alachua County voters one year after passing a bill that overturned Key West voter’s vote, it seems?

—@JakeFlaherty: Seeing as the Florida Legislature is in budget conferencing, do you think maybe there’s some sprinkle money available to fix the god-awful sound that the @floridachannel makes when the mics aren’t in use? I think everyone in the process can get behind this one!

Tweet, tweet:

—@BernieSanders: The 30 Major League Baseball owners are worth over $100 billion. The value of their teams increased by more than $41 billion since they bought them. Mr. Manfred: End the lockout. Negotiate in good faith. Don’t let the greed of baseball owners take away our national pastime.

—@ProfNarcoossee: My prediction is Starcruiser will be visiting Batuu in off-hours in the near future because these guests look SO ANNOYED they have to interact with us in regular clothes. Totally kills the LARPING vibe when you’re at the milk stand with a dude in LA RAMS SUPERBOWL CHAMPS gear