Posts Tagged Duval County

ACLU, Christian group oppose Florida school prayer bill

By Ashley Lopez | 02.15.12 | 9:30 am | More from The Florida Independent

A bill that would allow K-12 students to pray during all school events is currently being opposed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida and the Liberty Counsel. Both groups warn that such legislation would cost the state money in litigation. More…

Florida prisons update shackling policies for pregnant women

By Ashley Lopez | 02.08.12 | 3:47 pm | More from The Florida Independent

The Florida Sheriffs Association has announced that during a recent meeting, a group of sheriffs voted to adopt a policy for the restraint of incarcerated pregnant women with language very similar to a bill now making its way through the Legislature. More…

Florida teen pregnancy task force: Abstinence-only sex education not enough

By Ashley Lopez | 12.20.11 | 1:43 am | More from The Florida Independent

Last month, the Northeast Florida Teen Pregnancy Task Force released a report outlining recommendations for dealing with the region’s persistent teen pregnancy problem. More…

Gov. Rick Scott (Pic via scotttransition.com)

Florida Gov. Rick Scott cuts $2million from at-risk women and children program

By Ashley Lopez | 05.31.11 | 1:54 pm | More from The Florida Independent

Last week, Gov. Rick Scott cut close to $2 million in health services for at-risk women and children in line-item vetoes to the state budget. Among the projects cut was $200,000 for a pilot program to be carried out by the Healthy Start Coalition of Orange County More… that would have provided

hospital beds

Fla. Medicaid overhaul could run into conflicts with federal law

By Ashley Lopez | 05.20.11 | 6:20 pm | More from The Florida Independent

According to The News Service of Florida More…, Florida health officials have “less than three months” to develop a detailed Medicaid-overhaul plan to sell to the Obama administration. But whether or not the federal government will give Florida a go-ahead with its proposed overhaul is unclear, due to certain provisions

Jacksonville Sheriff John Rutherfod (Pic via Facebook)

Jacksonville sheriff not backing down from support for abstitence education group

By Virginia Chamlee | 03.18.11 | 1:56 pm | More from The Florida Independent

Jacksonville Sheriff John Rutherford, currently running for reelection, has yet to back down from an endorsement of the city’s controversial abstinence education group Project SOS. #

Project SOS has faced scrutiny More… in recent weeks. The group’s founder, Pam Mullarkey, has questionable ties to Ugandan pastor Martin Ssempa, a vocal advocate for 

Florida's "Choose Life" license plate

New legislation could redirect revenue from ‘Choose Life’ plates — but where does it go now?

By Virginia Chamlee | 01.11.11 | 1:00 pm | More from The Florida Independent

New legislation could affect More… where revenue from Florida’s “Choose Life” license plates ends up — moving it out of the hands of counties, who then distribute it to adoption organizations, and into the hands of Choose Life, Inc., which would distribute some of the money to various pregnancy centers, and