Karen Cyphers - page 5

Interactions with insurance companies are the number one drain on physicians’ time and that of their staff members, according to a survey just released by the Florida Medical Association. The FMA’s Business of Medicine Quarterly Index reveals that about one-third of respondents devote more than 20 hours of staff time weekly to interactions with insurers, and a quarter of respondents spend more than 15 staff hours per week requesting prior authorizations from insurers. Nearly 47 percent indicate that at least…

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Child gun injuries and deaths have been on the rise, according to a study presented in Orlando on Sunday at the American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference and Exhibition. The report found that hospitalizations from gunshot wounds increased from 4,270 to 7.730 between 1997 and 2009, with handguns being the most common culprit. States where greater numbers of people report having unlocked firearms saw greater rates of gun accidents. These stats point to the importance of gun owners adhering strictly…

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Today on Context Florida, Dan Krassner suggests that lawmakers should give Enterprise Florida an overhaul, citing issues with open government, ethics and accountability. Then, Peter Schorsch delves into the portrayal of humility to see Charlie Crist sitting on the floor during a meeting of the Black Caucus at the Democrats confab last weekend; and Darryl Paulson writes the second in his series on Obamacare, this time looking at the problems of substance with the law that go well beyond a…

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Today on Context Florida, Steve Robinson opens with the sobering question of “where is the outrage?” regarding ongoing gun violence in schools; and Ben Kirby continues, sharing the social and economic costs of suicide and touting the advocacy of Jason Tompkins, chair of the newly chartered Tampa Bay Chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide prevention. Then, Julie Delegal pens a column warning that education reform will fail if poverty isn’t addressed, and Darryl Paulson begins the first of a…

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Following the painstaking process of geocoding years of individual campaign contributions to candidates in federal elections, analysts at the Sunlight Foundation and Azavea have made it possible to visualize where money is coming from, and to which parties it goes. Released on Wednesday, the first product of these efforts is a series of county-by-county interactive maps showing the geographic concentrations of contributions. For example, they calculated that just 10 counties out of more than 3,000 nationwide accounted for nearly one-third…

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Teacher evaluation programs play an important role in student learning and long-term student outcomes, according to a study released last week by the National Bureau of Economic Research in Cambridge, Mass. The working paper evaluated IMPACT, an aggressive and controversial teacher evaluation and incentive program in D.C. that offers massive bonuses of up to $27,000 for the highest performing teachers and fires the lowest performers. The study found that IMPACT caused more low-performing teachers to leave the school system than…

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Today on Context Florida, Sheriff Scott Israel shares that bipartisan hearings are an “important first step” in fixing Florida’s Stand Your Ground law, and applauds Sens. Chris Smith and David Simmons for heading these efforts. Then, Jim McClellan relates one of his favorite memories: a night in 1992 when a bill exempting ostrich feed from sales tax was pending on Gov. Chiles desk; and Rick Outzen argues that “it’s time we challenge the popular notion that the purpose of our…

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