Scott Gets Speaking Role At RNC
August 7, 2012
Gov. Rick Scott will have a speaking role at the Republican National Convention later this month, the GOP confirmed after releasing a list of some of the speakers for the event.
Scott has been mostly on the periphery of national GOP politics, and there have been questions about what role he would play in the RNC gathering in Tampa. He’s not as strong a public speaker as a number of other GOP leaders, and his message – that the economy, at least here, is looking up and jobs are being created – is at odds with the national message of the party and its presidential candidate Mitt Romney, who are trying to make the case that the jobs picture is dismal.
The Tampa Bay Times reported that the RNC is set to announce several speakers for the Aug. 27-30 convention, where Romney will be officially tapped as the party’s nominee.
A few other GOP governors will also speak, notably South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, and New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez, both minorities – Haley is of Indian descent and Martinez is Hispanic – as the Republicans try to reach out to minority voters.
The party’s last presidential nominee, Sen. John McCain of Arizona is also set to appear, as are former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee; former Secretary of State Condolezza Rice; and Ohio Gov. John Kasich, the Times reported.
Still to be named is a keynote speaker. Pundits have floated several likely candidates for that coveted post, most prominently New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and Florida U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio. Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan has also been mentioned as someone likely to have a major role.
Rubio has also been frequently mentioned as a possible running mate pick for Romney.
By The News Service of Florida
Stars Score Five Unanswered Runs To Down Wahoos 5-3
August 7, 2012
After plating three first inning runs, the Pensacola Blue Wahoos allowed the Huntsville Stars to score five unanswered runs as the Wahoos dropped their third straight in Huntsville, 5-3, on Monday night.
As they did in the first three games of the series, the Blue Wahoos scored first. Pensacola plated three runs in the first inning to give starter Daniel Corcino some early run support. The Wahoos loaded the bases with one out and got the first run on a fielder’s choice to the shortstop off the bat of Bryson Smith plating Josh Fellhauer from third. David Vidal followed with a base hit that scored Ryan LaMarre. Pensacola went up 3-0 a batter later on an RBI single from Brodie Greene. That would be all the offense the Wahoos would get. They only had one hit after the second inning and did not have a single base runner over the last four innings.
The Stars started their attack by tying the game in the third. Hunter Morris scored Brock Kjeldgaard from first on a triple down the right field line. Two batters later he scored on a double from Kentrail Davis. Stars starting pitcher Johnny Hellweg brought Davis around with his first professional hit to tie the game at 3-3.
Huntsville went ahead for good in the third inning when Domnit Bolivar scored from third on a soft ground out by Morris. Anderson De La Rosa doubled home Davis in the fourth inning for an insurance run.
Hellweg (2-0) was finished on the mound after five innings. He gave up three runs on five hits. The right-hander walked seven and struck out three to earn the win. Corcino (7-6) was charged will all five Stars runs. He lasted six innings and walked three and struck out two batters in the losing effort. Darren Byrd (4) worked a perfect ninth to earn the save.
Fellhauer singled in the first inning to extend his hit streak to seven games. Billy Hamilton stole two bases giving him 127 for the season. The Wahoos shortstop is now 18 steal shy of tying the Minor League Baseball single-season stolen base record.
The series concludes on Tuesday. RHP Wirfin Obispo (3-0, 2.47) is slated to start for the Blue Wahoos against RHP Jimmy Nelson (1-1, 4.66) for Huntsville. First pitch is set for 6:43 p.m. from Joe Davis Stadium in Huntsville.
By Tommy Thrall
Josh Fellhauer extended his hit streak to seven games with a first inning single. Photo by Chris Nelson for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Man Killed In Hwy 90 Crash Escambia Woman Dies In Okaloosa Crash
August 6, 2012
Two crashes in Northwest Florida claimed two lives over the weekend.
Man Killed In Hwy 90 Crash
A Milton man was killed in a wreck early Sunday morning on Highway 90.
The accident happened about 4:15 a.m. near Smith’s Fish Camp Road when Jose Alfredo Montero-Jimenez, 40, lost control of his 2001 Ford F150 and overturned multiple times. He was not wearing his seat belt, according to the Florida Highway Patrol, and was ejected onto the highway.
Alfredo Montero-Jimenez was then ran over by a second vehicle. That vehicle, described as possibly a 1999-2002 Saturn, continued without stopping.
Anyone with information on the second vehicle is asked to call the Florida Highway Patrol at (850) 254-1402 ext. 8.
Escambia Woman Dies In Okaloosa Crash
An Escambia County women died in a crash in Okaloosa County Sunday afternoon.
The Florida Highway Patrol said 51-year old Lisa N. Noyes of Pensacola was westbound on I-10 before she lost control of her 2004 Ford Expedition and overturned numerous times. She was pronounced deceased as a result of her injuries.
Her passenger, 18-year old Zachary A. Noyes of Pensacola, was ejected. He was transported by Okaloosa County EMS to Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola in serious condition.
Man Steals Century’s Rose Bushes, Hauls Away Loot In Baby Carriage
August 6, 2012
A Century man has been charged after allegedly stealing rose bushes from the Town of Century and hauling away his loot in a baby carriage.
Arthur Walker, 41, was charged with second degree petit theft and later released from the Escambia County Jail on a $250 bond.
Century Town Clerk Leslie Gonzalez told Escambia County Sheriff’s deputies that she witnessed Walker walking down the sidewalk pushing a baby carriage with two rose bushes inside of it. As she arrived at the Century Town Hall, she noticed that two rose bushes had been dug up and removed from the town hall driveway. An employee of the nearby Century Branch Library told deputies the same information.
A warrant for Walker’s arrest was issued after Century Mayor Freddie McCall told deputies that he wished to pursue charges. McCall said he had met with Walker twice before after he allegedly stole chain link fence from town property, and Walker said he would not longer steal from the town.
Walker is due to make his first court appearance in September.
Expanded Weekly Yard, Bulky Waste Program Begins For ECUA Customers
August 6, 2012
Tuesday will mark the first day of enhanced and bulky yard waste pickups for North Escambia area ECUA customers.
The weekly bulky waste collection service includes pick-up of furniture and other household items that are too large to fit in the automated can for disposal.
“The unique feature of these improvements is customers will no longer have to call to schedule the pick up. They will simply place their items(s) at the curb, before 5:30 a.m., on their regular collection day. It’s just that simple,” said Gary Dean, ECUA sanitation collection manager.
According to ECUA, any materials remaining in the right-of-way on the regular collection day may be mistaken for a bulk waste item — so customers should be careful not to place items that are not intended for disposal in the collection area to avoid inadvertent pick ups.
Bulky Waste Program Guidelines
- Items accepted are: furniture, such as: couch, mattress, desk, chairs, dresser; rugs and carpets; vacuum cleaners; bicycles; bags of clothes; grills; and toilets.
- Customers are not required to call-in to schedule or receive a pick-up. Items should be placed at the curb by 5:30 a.m. on the regular collection day, but no sooner than 48 hours before the collection day.
- Pile the bulky waste items(s) at curbside, in an area that is free of over hanging tree limbs and/or wires, being careful not to block traffic.
- ECUA will collect two 6’ W x 6’ D x 6’ H piles of bulk items weekly.
The once-weekly yard waste collection service is also provided to all residential sanitation customers. Customers are encouraged to place all yard waste at the curb prior to 5:30 a.m. on the regular yard trash collection day.
Yard Waste Program Guidelines
- Do not use your garbage or recycling can for yard waste. Yard waste is collected separately from household garbage.
- Place bagged, bundled, or canned yard waste within two feet of the curb and away from the street/road.
- Small yard waste, leaves, pine straw and grass clippings must be contained in standard garbage containers or plastic bags that do not exceed 32 gallons in size or weigh more than 40 pounds when full. The ECUA will collect up to 20 plastic yard trash bags or cans each week.
- Cut limbs should not exceed six feet in length or 40 pounds in weight, and must be bundled in two piles of no more that two 6’ W x 6’ D x 6’ H piles.
Yard waste, as defined by the ECUA Sanitation Program, includes: leaves, pine straw, grass clippings and small prunings.
School Orientations Scheduled
August 6, 2012
Escambia County school students return to class in two weeks, on August 20. Students will have the opportunity to attend orientation sessions, pick up schedules and drop off supplies in advance.
(Looking for a school supply list? Click here.)
Orientations have been scheduled at schools across the North Escambia area:
ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS
- Bratt
- August 16, 9-10:30 a.m., Pre-K and K
- August 17, 9-10:30 a.m., Grades 1-5
- Jim Allen
- August 17, 9-10:30 a.m.,
- Molino Park
- August 16, 9-10:30 a.m., Pre-K and K
- August 17, 9-10 a.m., Grades 1-5
MIDDLE SCHOOLS
- Ernest Ward
- August 16, 2 p.m., 6th and new students
- Ransom
- August 16, 2 p.m., 6th and new students
HIGH SCHOOLS
- Northview
- August 15, 8:30 a.m., Seniors
- August 15, 10 a.m., Juniors
- August 15, 1:30 p.m., Sophomores
- August 16, 9 a.m., Freshmen
- Tate
- August 9, 8 a.m.-noon, Freshmen
- August 16, 1-2:30 p.m., Grades 10-12
- West Florida
- August 11, 9 a.m., Freshmen
- August 16, 10 a.m., Juniors
- August 16, 1 p.m., Sophomores
- August 16, 6 p.m., Seniors and parents
For schools in Escambia County not listed above, click here.
NASA Rover Lands On Mars; Beams Back First Photos
August 6, 2012
NASA’s newest Mars rover, Curiosity, landed on the Red Planet early Monday. The rover’s entry and descent was nerve-wracking for NASA engineers, compounded by a 14-minute delay as the rover’s signals travel to Earth from Mars. Curiosity became the seventh NASA spacecraft to land on the Red Planet.
Shortly after landing, Curiosity beamed two images back to earth — one showing a wheel on the Martian soil and the other showing the vehicle’s shadow on the surface (pictured top).
“No photo or it didn’t happen? Well lookee here, I’m casting a shadow on the ground in Mars’ Gale crater,” Curiosity posted on Twitter after the landing. “It once was one small step… now it’s six big wheels. Here’s a look at one of them on the soil of Mars.”
Curiosity is the centerpiece of the $2.5 billion Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft, launched in November aboard an Atlas V rocket. It’s traveled some 560 million kilometers toward its destination, the Red Planet.
Curiosity was traveling at about 20,000 kilometers per hour when it hits the Martian atmosphere. It had only seven minutes to reduce its speed for a soft landing but NASA engineers were not able to control or even witness the events in real time. They called this period “seven minutes of terror.”
Its descent-stage retrorockets fired, guiding it to the surface. Nylon cords lowered the rover to the ground in the “sky crane” maneuver. When the spacecraft sensed touchdown, the connecting cords were severed, and the descent stage flew out of the way.
Curiosity is a “Mars scientist’s dream machine,” said Deputy Project Scientist Ashwin Vasavada ahead of its launch. “This rover is not only the most technically capable rover ever sent to another planet, but it’s actually the most capable scientific explorer we’ve ever sent out,” he said.
Curiosity is the size of a small car and has 17 cameras. It’s much larger than previous rovers and can travel as far as 200 meters per day. It’s a nuclear-powered mobile laboratory.
The remote-controlled vehicle can gather samples of soil and rocks and analyze them using instruments onboard.
The goal is to see if the area ever had environmental conditions that could have supported microbial life, explains Vasavada. “This mission is really about looking for those habitable environments, and not detecting life itself,” he said.
A team of space agency scientists selected the landing site, the foot of a mountain within a deep, 150-kilometer-wide depression called Gale Crater. Each layer of rock contains clues about the planet’s evolution.
Curiosity will investigate Martian geology, weather and radiation levels during the mission, which is expected to last about two Earth years. . .the equivalent of one Martian year.
Pictured top: The first images back from Curiosity, showing a shadow of the rover on Mars (left) and a wheel on the dusty red planet (right). Pictured top inset: This artist concept features NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover. Pictured below: The Mars Science Laboratory team reacts early Monday morning after learning that the Curiosity rover had landed safely on Mars.. (NASA/JPL-Caltec)
Escambia County’s Justin Gatlin Takes Bronze
August 6, 2012
It’s wasn’t the gold he had hoped for, but Escambia County’s Olympian took the bronze Sunday.
Justin Gatlin of Pensacola finished third in the men’s 100m dash at London’s Olympic Stadium. Gatlin’s personal best time of 9.79 was 0.16 behind Jamaica’s Usain Bolt, who posted a time of 9.63 seconds, which broke the Olympic record. Bolt’s teammate, Yohan Blake, took the silver in 9.75 seconds.
Tyson Gay (Lexington, Ky.) was fourth, 0.01 behind Gatlin, while Ryan Bailey (Long Beach, Calif.) was fifth in 9.88 seconds.
Gatlin had waited eight years to get back on the podium. The 2004 Olympic 100-meter champion, Gatlin served a doping ban.
Gatlin, 30, said he was inspired watching Bolt and Blake as the Woodham High graduate served his suspension, and then worked his way back to the top.
“I went out there to challenge a mountain,” Gatlin said. “I went out there to challenge the odds, not just what I’ve been through, but the legacy of Usain Bolt. I went out there to be fearless.”
Choking up, he said, “Just to be part of an epic race, I just wanted to get on the podium and be there for my country. There were a lot of people in the audience with flags so I wanted to be there for them.
Gatlin’s next event will be the 4 x 100 relay for Team USA on Friday.
State Ready To Revamp Medicaid Payments To Hospitals
August 6, 2012
With the hospital industry closely watching, the state is moving forward with a plan to revamp the way hospitals get paid to care for Medicaid patients.
Lawmakers this year directed the state Agency for Health Care Administration to develop the plan, which is designed to more accurately tailor Medicaid payments to the treatment each patient receives. It will replace a complex system that involves calculating per-diem rates for inpatient care — a system that Gov. Rick Scott and other critics say has led to wide differences in how much hospitals get paid.
Consultants briefed state and health-care industry officials Thursday about work on the plan, which is required to be submitted to Scott and legislative leaders by Jan. 1 and is scheduled to take effect July 1, 2013. The changes have high stakes for hospitals, as some likely will wind up getting paid more under the new system and others will get paid less.
Lawmakers required that the revamped system — known in the hospital world as a system of diagnosis related groups, or DRGs — not cost more than continuing the current system.
“We have to be budget neutral,” said Jim Pettersson, a managing director of the consulting firm Navigant. “We don’t have an option.”
The Medicare program and some other states already use DRG systems. But the Florida Medicaid changes could particularly affect so-called “safety net” hospitals, such as teaching hospitals, public hospitals and children’s hospitals, which treat large numbers of low-income patients.
Jim Zingale, who closely tracks finance issues for the Safety Net Hospital Alliance of Florida, said he was concerned about being able to get the revamped system in place by next July. Consultants and state health officials will have to resolve myriad details and also will have get approvals from the Legislature and the federal government.
“That timeline looks very difficult to deliver an accurate product that meets these requirements,” Zingale said.
Pettersson, whose firm has worked on DRG systems in other states, said the timeline is aggressive, but “it can be done.” He also said the payment systems can include provisions that help shift money to hospitals that care for large numbers of Medicaid patients.
“The states generally try to protect the hospitals that are really vested in the Medicaid program,” Pettersson said.
Zingale said it also is unclear how the DRG system would work with a broader state move to shift almost all Medicaid beneficiaries into HMOs and other types of managed-care plans. That shift, which is expected to play out over the next few years, will lead to hospitals and managed-care plans negotiating contracts that will include payments.
Though DRG systems vary, the general idea is to classify patients based on such factors as their diagnoses or types of treatments. Those classifications are then used to calculate payment amounts that are designed to more closely reflect the costs of treating patients than a per-diem rate would.
Pettersson said one possible DRG model, for example, includes numerous classifications for neonatal care. Such care can have widely varying costs because of complications suffered by infants, and the classifications could help better tailor payments to hospitals.
By The News Service of Florida
Lottery Sales Up, More Cash For Schools
August 6, 2012
Lawmakers will have an additional $48 million to spend on education construction and other enhancements under a revised Lottery scenario reached by state economists.
Tough economic times may be translating into higher revenues for the Department of Lottery, which would see total sales climb by $262 million more for the current fiscal year that began July 1 than economists estimated earlier this year.
The boost in Lottery revenues translates into more money available to the Education Enhancement Trust Fund, which was created to augment traditional general revenue education funding.
Going forward, however, Lottery proceeds will continue to exceed previous projects through 2015/16 but at a more moderate clip.
Sales of scratch-off games were up 5.3 percent from previous projections while Lotto sales will be flat. PowerBall sales growth, though strong at 12 percent, will grow at nearly half the rate as previously expected.