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Gainesville Sun
By Christopher Curry

The second year of Affordable Care Act enrollment starts in mid-November, and the navigators who help consumers sign up for health insurance coverage are gearing up to begin work.

Enrollment starts Nov. 15, and navigators will begin seeing residents interested in signing up for health insurance through the Affordable Care Act on Nov. 3, said Lauren Vagelakos, the project coordinator for the nonprofit WellFlorida Council’s navigator program.

Like last year, the navigator program in Alachua County will be offered through several public […]

Senior Times Magazine
by Kendra Siler-Marsiglio, PhD

Feeling unmotivated, unfocused, or in a “fog”? Life in the Information Age makes these sensations more common than ever. Read on to learn the science behind “cerebral congestion” and how to refresh your mind.

Science is showing that there are three major reasons that our brains are getting tired from attention demands.

Reason 1: Too much mental activity and not enough down time. When we are attentive and completing tasks, our minds are functioning in the central executive mode. If we […]

Health News Florida
By Carol Gentry

The University of South Florida has been awarded by far the largest grant in the state to hire “navigators” who help uninsured people sign up for health insurance coverage through the federal Marketplace, the Department of Health and Human Services announced Monday.

Only two other Florida organizations won  navigator grants: the Epilepsy Foundation of Florida, $871,275, and the Pinellas County Commission, $535,156.

This year’s USF grant, of almost $5.4 million, is even larger than the $4.2 million USF received last year. The territory covered […]

North Florida School Days

Open Enrollment for the Health Insurance Marketplace opens on November 15, 2014 with coverage starting as early as January 1, 2015. If you are already enrolled in a plan through the Marketplace from the previous year, you have the opportunity to renew the same plan or pick a different plan for the upcoming year.

Before Open Enrollment begins again on November 15, it is possible to buy insurance through the Marketplace if you experience a qualifying life event such as marriage, divorce, […]

Suwannee Democrat
By Joyce Marie Taylor

Members of the Strategic Health Planning Committee for Hamilton County met for a working lunch meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 12, with about 16 people from various agencies present, including Jeff Feller from Well Florida, Inc. The main objective of the meeting was to review the Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP) and determine if any changes needed to be made.

In attendance with Feller were Ida Daniels, Hamilton County Schools Food and Nutrition Service; Grace McDonald, Hamilton County Alcohol and Other Drug […]

The 2nd Annual Health Information Summit on August 14, 2014 featured MyHealthStory, an electronic patient information and records sharing system for patients and healthcare providers, which was recently the topic of a Gainesville Sun article.

MyHealthStory is free to patients and healthcare facilities’ staff, and is only $25 per prescribing provider per month in ambulatory settings. Learn more about MyHealthStory at www.CommunityHealthIT.org.

Gainesville Sun and Ocala Star Banner
By Christopher Curry

A community nonprofit group is trying to gain traction for an electronic patient information and records sharing system for small medical offices and providers.

The service, MyHealthStory, was a point of focus during Thursday morning’s summit at Santa Fe College for health care staff and administrators.

The system evolved out of a string of community meetings years ago and a partnership that includes WellFlorida Council, Santa Fe College and the Heart of Florida Health Center in Marion County. Together, […]

The 2nd Annual Health Information Summit, intended for health care staff, administrators and physicians interested in getting the latest info on HIPAA, is set for Thursday morning at the Santa Fe College Fine Arts Hall, 3000 NW 83rd St.

Lasting from 9:30-11:30 a.m., the summit will provide community education specific to HIPAA, the federal law that deals with privacy of health care information. The session is also intended as a follow-up to last year’s summit in providing updates regarding current health care initiatives.

From 9:45-10:30 a.m., Kimberly […]

Gainesville Sun and Ocala Star Banner
By Christopher Curry

Most insurance companies operating in Florida will raise rates next year for health plans purchased through the Affordable Care Act.

On Monday, the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation announced that, according to information insurance companies provided to the state, premiums for plans purchased through the health care law are expected to rise an average of 13.2 percent in 2015.

In Florida, 14 companies filed to offer plans through the health care exchange next year. Three of them will be […]

Suwannee Democrat
By Joyce Marie Taylor

Hamilton County Health Department Administrator Mark Lander offered a presentation to the Board of County Commissioners on a community health improvement plan at their meeting on Tuesday, July 16.

“Part of our Hamilton County steering committee for health is a project that has been going on for about two and a half or three years, with steering committee meetings looking at health issues within Hamilton County and ways to address those issues,” said Lander. “More specifically, what we can do to […]