Greg Allen

How A Florida Medical School Cares For Communities In Need

Greg Allen — Tue, 14 May 2013 20:56:00 +0000

If it's a Monday, you can usually find Dr. David Brown parked next to a lake in Miami, spending the day inside a 36-foot-long RV. He's not on vacation.

Brown is chief of family medicine at Florida International University's medical school. The RV is the school's mobile health clinic.

Every Monday it's parked at the Royal Country Mobile Home Park in northwest Miami-Dade County. "It's a beautiful place right here," he says.

Rubio Tries To Convince Conservatives He Hasn't Been Duped

Greg Allen — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 19:27:00 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnrb3Dd8KkM

After Belt Tightening, Some States Are Back In The Black

Greg Allen — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 08:56:00 +0000

Across the country, state budgets are back in the black after years of belt-tightening and spending cuts. From California to Florida, in nearly every state, the economic recovery has produced a surge in tax revenue.

For governors and state legislators, that's produced a new question: how to spend the money.

The past three years have not been easy ones for elected officials. Nearly every state requires them to produce a balanced budget.

As Florida Bill Looks To Aid Feral Cats, Opponents Claw Back

Greg Allen — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 06:44:00 +0000

In state legislatures around the country, lawmakers are debating important subjects — education reform, election laws, gun control and abortion. But in Florida, one of the hottest issues to come before the Legislature this term involves cats.

There, lawmakers are considering a contentious bill that would offer legal protection to groups that trap, neuter and return feral cats to their colonies.

An Alternative To Shelters

Before Disney, Florida's Silver Springs Lured Tourists

Greg Allen — Sat, 13 Apr 2013 09:33:00 +0000
Before Disney World, Silver Springs in Central Florida was for decades one of the state's most popular tourist destinations.
Even if you've never visited Silver Springs, you might have seen it. The 1960s television show Sea Hunt was filmed here, as were countless movies, including Tarzan and Creature From the Black Lagoon.
The crystal clear water of Silver Springs made it invaluable to Hollywood.

Cuban Dissident Blogger Seeks To Unite Fidel's Cuba With Miami's Cuba

Greg Allen — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 12:04:00 +0000
For Cuban-Americans, Miami's Freedom Tower is almost a holy place — a former immigration intake center where thousands came in the 1960s after they fled the island's communist rule.
But across the street from the hall, where Cuban dissident blogger Yoani Sanchez spoke Monday, there were protests. A dozen anti-Castro activists repudiated some of Sanchez's past comments, including her support for lifting the long-standing U.S.

Florida Pitches New Facilities To Clinch Spring Training

Greg Allen — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 20:27:00 +0000
For baseball fans, spring training is a time for renewed hopes and a reminder that winter is almost over. But for the major league teams and Arizona and Florida communities, spring training is big business. In Florida, 1.5 million fans attend spring training games with an estimated $750 million annual economic impact, and the state is working to keep the teams from fleeing.
In Port St. Lucie, on Florida's east coast, an hour before the first pitch at Tradition Field, many fans are already in their seats.

Florida Atlantic Donation Sparks Outrage, But University Doesn't Budge

Greg Allen — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 11:05:00 +0000
Florida Atlantic University says it's standing by its deal to sell naming rights to its new football stadium to a controversial private prison company. The Boca Raton-based GEO Group faces allegations of abuse and neglect at some of its facilities, and there's a growing call on campus for the school to sever its ties.
Normally, when a school announces a multimillion-dollar donation, it's met on campus with cheers. But at FAU, a public university, the news that the Owls football team would soon be playing in GEO Stadium was met by many with incredulity and outrage.

In Miami, A New Condo Boom Revives Hopes Of Housing Recovery

Greg Allen — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 08:24:00 +0000
Here's a headline that may sound familiar: Miami is in the middle of a condo boom.
Just seven years ago, Miami had a similar surge in condo construction. But it all came crashing down.

Taxpayers Steaming Over Florida Nuclear Plant's Shuttering

Greg Allen — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 22:40:00 +0000
The operator of Florida's Crystal River nuclear plant sent shockwaves through the state when it announced recently that it was shutting down the facility for good.
When nuclear plants have closed elsewhere, locals have cheered. But in Citrus County, it's been more like a death in the family.
At Fat Boy's Bar-B-Q restaurant in Crystal River, owner Bubba Keller says he's worried about what's going to happen to the community. "I mean, things are already tough," Keller says.

One-Way Tickets To Florida: Puerto Ricans Escape Island Woes

Greg Allen — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 08:22:00 +0000
Puerto Rico's population is dropping. Faced with a deteriorating economy, increased poverty and a swelling crime rate, many citizens are fleeing the island for the U.S. mainland. In a four-part series, Morning Edition explores this phenomenon, and how Puerto Rico's troubles are affecting its people and other Americans in unexpected ways.
According to the most recent census, the 4.6 million Puerto Ricans living on the U.S. mainland now surpass those on the island of Puerto Rico. For years, they've been migrating out of the U.S.

Wood Stork's Endangered Status Is Up In The Air

Greg Allen — Sun, 03 Feb 2013 20:13:00 +0000
The last few years have been especially tough in South Florida for wading birds such as egrets, herons, ibises and wood storks that feed and nest in the region's wetlands.
The problem is there are fewer wetlands, and the last few years have been dry, reducing water levels in critical areas.
Despite that, the federal government says one wading bird, the wood stork, is doing well enough that it may soon be removed from the endangered list. In December, the U.S.

Estimated Costs Drive Debate As Florida Weighs Medicaid Expansion

Greg Allen — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 21:26:00 +0000
Florida and several other states are wrestling with a decision: whether to expand Medicaid.
When the Supreme Court upheld the Affordable Care Act last year, the court said states could opt out of that part of the law. But it's key. It would provide coverage to millions of low-income Americans who currently have no health insurance.
Florida Gov. Rick Scott says he's concerned about how much expanding Medicaid would cost. But others charge the governor is exaggerating.
No governor fought harder against the Affordable Care Act than Scott.

Outspoken Alan Grayson Gets Another Chance In Congress

Greg Allen — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 08:29:00 +0000
Among the more than 80 House freshmen who were sworn in this week, there were several who had been there before — including Florida Democrat Alan Grayson.
After starting his first term four years ago, Grayson quickly made a name for himself with biting comments targeting Republicans — like when he said during the health care debate: "If you get sick, America, the Republican health care plan is this: Die quickly."
His national stature didn't prevent him from being defeated in 2010.

After Beating Allen West, House Freshman Faces New Fight

Greg Allen — Wed, 26 Dec 2012 13:20:00 +0000
Of the eight new seats that Democrats picked up in the House of Representatives in November, four of them come from Florida.
Democrats were aided by a big turnout for President Obama, plus new rules that helped erase a Republican advantage in how districts are drawn in the Sunshine State.
One of those new Democratic seats is held by Patrick Murphy, the House's youngest member.