WINK NEWS How Floridians are voting on Consitutional right to abortions As Election Day ramps up, WINK News is monitoring the results of the most controversial amendments on the ballot, including Florida’s Amendment 4.
Collier County commission race As the 2024 general election gets underway, WINK News is monitoring the election results in several local races, including the Collier County Commission race.
Cape Coral 5 seats in Cape Coral City Council to eb decided on Election Day The Cape Coral City Council election will be decided on Tuesday. Five seats are up for grabs.
FORT MYERS Fort Myers City Council race for 2 wards The 2024 elections are looking to be a tense battle that will have every American on the edge of their seats. In Southwest Florida, the feeling is no different.
Lee County Superintendent election; School Board District 7 Voters in Lee County are going to the polls to fill some crucial seats in the school district.
PUNTA GORDA The race for Punta Gorda City Council November 5 is election day, as politicians across the country compete for office, with Southwest Florida being no different.
Lee County commission race for districts 3 and 5 The 2024 elections include several local Southwest Florida races, among them are races for two districts on the Lee County Board of County Commissioners.
Election Day crowds expected despite record early voting Election Day is nearly upon us. At 7 p.m. on Tuesday, the polls will be closed, and our team will bring you the results.
DOWNTOWN FORT MYERS Voters in Downtown Fort Myers ready for 2024 Election A lot can change in four years. During the 2020 election, many voters masked up as they cast their ballots, and the pandemic was at the top of many voters’ minds.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda residents frustrated by hurricane debris delays Many people in parts of southwest Florida feel like they’ve dealt with more than their fair share of storm damage lately.
Miracle Moment: A rosy outlook following surprise diagnosis It’s time for Miracle Moment. Today, we meet a toddler diagnosed with a disease without known prevention or cure.
Poll workers ready for Election Day rush in Collier County Poll workers gear up for a busy Tuesday in Collier County; some have been there for a while, and this year marks their first time working at a polling place for others.
CAPE CORAL Voters decide: Will Cape Coral City Council members stay or go? Stipends, Jaycee Park and new developments have been topics of concern in the City of Cape Coral for months now.
MATLACHA Lee County residents still dealing with damage from hurricanes Hurricane recovery has been an ongoing project here in Southwest Florida since Hurricane Ian.
FGCU Former FGCU golfer Frankie Capan III makes PGA Tour After playing two seasons on the Korn Ferry Tour, former FGCU golfer Frankie Capan III is moving up to the PGA Tour.
WINK NEWS How Floridians are voting on Consitutional right to abortions As Election Day ramps up, WINK News is monitoring the results of the most controversial amendments on the ballot, including Florida’s Amendment 4.
Collier County commission race As the 2024 general election gets underway, WINK News is monitoring the election results in several local races, including the Collier County Commission race.
Cape Coral 5 seats in Cape Coral City Council to eb decided on Election Day The Cape Coral City Council election will be decided on Tuesday. Five seats are up for grabs.
FORT MYERS Fort Myers City Council race for 2 wards The 2024 elections are looking to be a tense battle that will have every American on the edge of their seats. In Southwest Florida, the feeling is no different.
Lee County Superintendent election; School Board District 7 Voters in Lee County are going to the polls to fill some crucial seats in the school district.
PUNTA GORDA The race for Punta Gorda City Council November 5 is election day, as politicians across the country compete for office, with Southwest Florida being no different.
Lee County commission race for districts 3 and 5 The 2024 elections include several local Southwest Florida races, among them are races for two districts on the Lee County Board of County Commissioners.
Election Day crowds expected despite record early voting Election Day is nearly upon us. At 7 p.m. on Tuesday, the polls will be closed, and our team will bring you the results.
DOWNTOWN FORT MYERS Voters in Downtown Fort Myers ready for 2024 Election A lot can change in four years. During the 2020 election, many voters masked up as they cast their ballots, and the pandemic was at the top of many voters’ minds.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda residents frustrated by hurricane debris delays Many people in parts of southwest Florida feel like they’ve dealt with more than their fair share of storm damage lately.
Miracle Moment: A rosy outlook following surprise diagnosis It’s time for Miracle Moment. Today, we meet a toddler diagnosed with a disease without known prevention or cure.
Poll workers ready for Election Day rush in Collier County Poll workers gear up for a busy Tuesday in Collier County; some have been there for a while, and this year marks their first time working at a polling place for others.
CAPE CORAL Voters decide: Will Cape Coral City Council members stay or go? Stipends, Jaycee Park and new developments have been topics of concern in the City of Cape Coral for months now.
MATLACHA Lee County residents still dealing with damage from hurricanes Hurricane recovery has been an ongoing project here in Southwest Florida since Hurricane Ian.
FGCU Former FGCU golfer Frankie Capan III makes PGA Tour After playing two seasons on the Korn Ferry Tour, former FGCU golfer Frankie Capan III is moving up to the PGA Tour.
The Center for Covid Control testing site at the Edison Mall appears to be cited by Fort Myers Code Enforcement. (CREDIT: WINK News) A troubled COVID-19 testing site set to reopen on Saturday at the Edison Mall might not open after all. The site in Bonita Springs could be suffering the same fate. Not only is the Center for Covid Control under investigation by the federal government, but the City of Fort Myers has cited the center for a code violation at its location at the Edison Mall parking lot. According to a warning notice taped to the trailer’s door, the Center for Covid control is operating without a business tax receipt. That tax receipt was something the site failed to give to the City. In order to continue operating, the code violation notice says the testing site must “apply for and obtain a Business Tax Receipt.” This was the first time the City has uttered even a word about the Center for Covid Control. Now, WINK News has learned that the sight on Bonita Springs is closed. And a notice from Florida Power & Light hangs on the door saying that the building’s power has been shut off. On Friday, the federal government confirmed it’s investigating laboratories and testing sites associated with the Center for Covid Control, the company at the center of a WINK News investigation. WINK News confirmed the company and one of its labs, Doctors Clinical Laboratory, sent test results to people before they took a COVID-19 test. The Center for Covid Control (CCC) has sites across Southwest Florida and 272 others nationwide. WINK News first brought you the story of Doug and Erin Kates, the couple who went to the Bonita Springs site and got negative results before they even took their test. “I hope it gets shut down soon,” Erin Kates said. It paused operations nationwide on Jan. 14 with the intent to retrain its employees and roll out new procedures. Minnesota’s Attorney General filed a lawsuit against the company, citing misleading, deceptively riddled and fraudulent activity. Some in Southwest Florida told WINK News the same thing. Mary Farmer says she manages the Edison Mall Center for Covid Control site. And, she says she knows the real reason the site was shut down. “Everybody has been shut down that was ever associated with the Center for COVID control. Everybody has to be investigated to show that they weren’t part of that,” said Farmer. It planned to reopen its testing sites on Saturday. The Center for Covid Control says it made that announcement on Thursday, Jan. 20. However, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid said on Friday it was aware of CCC’s plan to reopen on Saturday. Center for Medicare and Medicaid statement The testing site in Cape Coral appears to be closed for good. It’s unclear if a site in Bonita Springs and the one in Fort Myers will reopen. WINK News is reaching out to the City of Fort Myers for comment. In a press release posted to its website, the Center for Covid Control said it is extending its pause on operations. Here is their full statement: “Center for Covid Control (CCC) announced today it is extending its pause on operations and will not be reopening on Saturday, January 22, 2022. CCC remains committed to providing the highest level of customer service and diagnostic quality and will not resume collection of patient samples until staffing resources permit CCC to operate at full capacity. As previously announced, CCC is using this operational pause to train additional staff on sample collection and handling, customer service and communications best practices, as well as compliance with regulatory guidelines. CCC will provide an update on reopening plans when appropriate.” So, based on the statement and the closures, WINK News called the Center for Covid Control. This was the first time a human answered the phone. The help desk said they didn’t know what we were referring to and to direct inquiries to press@centerforcovidcontrol.com. The Center for Covid Control does have some time before it has to respond to the Minnesota Attorney General’s 25-page lawsuit. However, the CCC has not yet commented on The Center for Medicare and Medicaid’s 81-page investigation. For now, we were told, all Center for Covid Control locations will remain closed until further notice.