City of Naples hosts open house workshop for Naples road projectsOllie’s Pub, the home of SWFL’s local music scene, closes after 4 memorable years
City of Naples hosts open house workshop for Naples road projects The City of Naples is hosting an open house workshop to hear from the public regarding road improvements.
CAPE CORAL Ollie’s Pub, the home of SWFL’s local music scene, closes after 4 memorable years Ollie’s Pub, once the center of local original music in Southwest Florida, is closing after a prosperous yet arduous four years.
New FGCU athletic director Colin Hargis puts business degree to use Hargis began his new job at FGCU on April 29 knowing he would have about $15 million in annual funding—and also knowing the budget has more than doubled in the last decade.
Future unknown for Punta Gorda Waterfront Hotel site What’s to come of the Punta Gorda Waterfront Hotel and adjoining Hurricane Charley’s Sushi, Raw Bar & Grill after demolition is yet to be determined.
(CBS) Trump held in contempt for violating gag order in “hush money” trial. Here’s how much he owes. The judge overseeing Donald Trump’s criminal trial in New York held him in contempt of court on Tuesday for violating a gag order.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) Shootout that killed 4 law officers began as task force tried to serve a warrant, police say A shootout that killed four law enforcement officers and wounded four others in North Carolina began as officers went serve a warrant.
WINK NEWS Semi-truck crash shuts down multiple lanes at Pine Ridge Road A crash involving a semi-truck caused lanes at Pine Ridge Road to close temporarily on Tuesday.
FORT MYERS Man accused of fatal North Fort Myers shooting held without bond The North Fort Myers man arrested for allegedly shooting into a truck, killing a man is being held without bond following a court appearance.
Lake Park Diner expands with Founders Square location Not only will the new Founders Square location of Lake Park Diner serve the growing population in North Naples and Golden Gate Estates, the second helping of the local dining spot will serve as the prototype for future iterations of the casual restaurant concept.
IONA Woman discovered in Bayside Inlet, condition unknown According to the fire district, reports of a woman in a canal were issued at around 7:50 a.m. at Junonia Court in Iona.
NAPLES Gov. DeSantis waives entrance fees for Florida State Parks for Memorial Day Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced the suspension of all entry fees in Florida state parks during Memorial Day weekend.
FORT MYERS Annual SWFL Wellness Fair in Fort Myers to promote well-being The Calusa Nature Center & Planetarium is partnering with the SWFL Wellness Fair to offer a day of fun and inspiration in Fort Myers.
Tampa Gov. DeSantis renews the Freedom Sales Tax holiday in Florida Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced the renewal of the Freedom Sales Tax holiday in Tampa.
NEW YORK (AP) Protesters take over Columbia University’s Hamilton Hall in escalation of anti-war demonstrations Dozens of protesters took over a building at Columbia University in New York early Tuesday, barricading the entrances and unfurling a Palestinian flag out of a window in the latest escalation of demonstrations against the Israel-Hamas war that have spread to college campuses nationwide.
THE WEATHER AUTHORITY Isolated storms to develop Tuesday afternoon and evening The Weather Authority is tracking a dry Tuesday morning with the possibility of isolated rainstorms throughout the afternoon and into the evening
City of Naples hosts open house workshop for Naples road projects The City of Naples is hosting an open house workshop to hear from the public regarding road improvements.
CAPE CORAL Ollie’s Pub, the home of SWFL’s local music scene, closes after 4 memorable years Ollie’s Pub, once the center of local original music in Southwest Florida, is closing after a prosperous yet arduous four years.
New FGCU athletic director Colin Hargis puts business degree to use Hargis began his new job at FGCU on April 29 knowing he would have about $15 million in annual funding—and also knowing the budget has more than doubled in the last decade.
Future unknown for Punta Gorda Waterfront Hotel site What’s to come of the Punta Gorda Waterfront Hotel and adjoining Hurricane Charley’s Sushi, Raw Bar & Grill after demolition is yet to be determined.
(CBS) Trump held in contempt for violating gag order in “hush money” trial. Here’s how much he owes. The judge overseeing Donald Trump’s criminal trial in New York held him in contempt of court on Tuesday for violating a gag order.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) Shootout that killed 4 law officers began as task force tried to serve a warrant, police say A shootout that killed four law enforcement officers and wounded four others in North Carolina began as officers went serve a warrant.
WINK NEWS Semi-truck crash shuts down multiple lanes at Pine Ridge Road A crash involving a semi-truck caused lanes at Pine Ridge Road to close temporarily on Tuesday.
FORT MYERS Man accused of fatal North Fort Myers shooting held without bond The North Fort Myers man arrested for allegedly shooting into a truck, killing a man is being held without bond following a court appearance.
Lake Park Diner expands with Founders Square location Not only will the new Founders Square location of Lake Park Diner serve the growing population in North Naples and Golden Gate Estates, the second helping of the local dining spot will serve as the prototype for future iterations of the casual restaurant concept.
IONA Woman discovered in Bayside Inlet, condition unknown According to the fire district, reports of a woman in a canal were issued at around 7:50 a.m. at Junonia Court in Iona.
NAPLES Gov. DeSantis waives entrance fees for Florida State Parks for Memorial Day Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced the suspension of all entry fees in Florida state parks during Memorial Day weekend.
FORT MYERS Annual SWFL Wellness Fair in Fort Myers to promote well-being The Calusa Nature Center & Planetarium is partnering with the SWFL Wellness Fair to offer a day of fun and inspiration in Fort Myers.
Tampa Gov. DeSantis renews the Freedom Sales Tax holiday in Florida Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced the renewal of the Freedom Sales Tax holiday in Tampa.
NEW YORK (AP) Protesters take over Columbia University’s Hamilton Hall in escalation of anti-war demonstrations Dozens of protesters took over a building at Columbia University in New York early Tuesday, barricading the entrances and unfurling a Palestinian flag out of a window in the latest escalation of demonstrations against the Israel-Hamas war that have spread to college campuses nationwide.
THE WEATHER AUTHORITY Isolated storms to develop Tuesday afternoon and evening The Weather Authority is tracking a dry Tuesday morning with the possibility of isolated rainstorms throughout the afternoon and into the evening
MGN WASHINGTON (AP) – The Obama administration defended the health care law’s struggling insurance co-ops Tuesday, suggesting to Congress that cutbacks demanded by lawmakers themselves put added pressure on an altruistic alternative to mega-insurers. State regulators have ordered 11 of the 23 nonprofit co-ops shut down over solvency concerns, forcing several hundred thousand customers to seek new coverage. Only one co-op, the one in Maine, made money last year. Congressional Republicans say the taxpayer-financed program exemplifies “crony capitalism” in which the government backs certain businesses for political purposes. The argument at Tuesday’s hearing before the House Ways and Means Committee was the administration’s most direct response to a wave of seven co-ops closing last month. State insurance regulators appear to be moving proactively to avoid serious disruptions for consumers by winnowing out plans that could fail next year. Most customers affected have been able to keep their co-op plans through the end of this year, but must find new coverage for 2016. “Only in Washington would a group of bureaucrats think they knew how to micromanage ‘competition’ instead of letting consumers and markets do what they do best,” said Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, who chairs the health subcommittee. The formal name of the program is Consumer Operated and Oriented Plan, or co-op. The federal government provided $2.4 billion in loans to get the co-ops going, and repayment from the ones that have failed seems doubtful. Nevertheless, administration official Mandy Cohen told lawmakers that co-ops have played an important role in fostering competition and choice in the law’s health insurance markets, now in their third year. “There have been successful co-ops which have provided consumers in their states an additional choice of health insurance and have improved competition,” Cohen said in written testimony. “And there also have been Co-ops that for a number of reasons have faced compliance, technical, operational, or financial difficulties.” Cohen is chief operating officer at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which oversees government health insurance programs. Cohen noted that President Barack Obama’s health care law had originally provided much more money for the program – $6 billion – but that Congress took away most of that. “New entrants to any market, especially the insurance market, can face pressures, particularly in early stages,” said Cohen. “Co-ops entered the health insurance market with a number of challenges, including building a provider network and customer support, no previous claims experience on which to base pricing, and competition from larger, experienced issuers.” Republicans say the program was flawed from the start and spending more money on it would have been a waste. “I suspect we’re never getting this money back,” Brady said. The National Association of Insurance Commissioners, which represents state regulators, says there’s no single reason why so many co-ops failed. Among the factors: co-ops were new companies, taking on patients they did not know and operating in a very competitive marketplace. NAIC says the closings may have peaked, since state regulators were anxious to get weak co-ops off the market before the start of the health care law’s sign-up season on Nov. 1. The group says some co-ops may yet succeed. The co-ops were the health care law’s alternative to corporate insurers. After congressional Democrats were unable to rally support for a government plan to compete against insurers, the fallback option became nonprofit co-ops. The administration says it ran a rigorous screening process, sifting through nearly 150 applicants. As recently as the spring, the White House touted co-ops as an accomplishment. But a report this summer from the inspector general of the Health and Human Services department found that the co-ops were awash in red ink. Nineteen co-ops had medical claims that exceeded premium income. The reasons included higher-than-expected enrollment of people with expensive health problems, lower-than-expected enrollment of younger people, and inaccurate pricing of coverage.