VIEWPOINTS: PUBLISHED September 17, 2026

The Hope Florida scandal shows that the state’s priorities have to change | Column

Dick Batchelor

The Hope Florida scandal shows that the state’s priorities have to change | Column

Some horrifying cases of child abuse point to where the money is really needed.

Thanks to a grand jury report and good journalism, we know that $10 million from Florida’s Medicaid overbilling settlement didn’t go where you might reasonably expect: to the people who rely on Medicaid.

Instead, most of it ultimately went toward the political fight against recreational marijuana, a diversion of funds that involved the Hope Florida Foundation and a political committee controlled by James Uthmeier, Gov. Ron DeSantis’ then chief of staff and current attorney general.

I’m not going to dwell on all the machinations that led to this $8.5 million windfall for political activities. I’ll leave that to the forensic accountants — and voters.

But what really sent my outrage meter soaring, even by Florida standards, was when I looked at the Medicaid fiasco alongside other examples of Florida’s children, families and elderly being shortchanged, ignored or worse.

Consider the state’s budget. Though there are bright spots — higher foster-care payments and more funding for Alzheimer’s respite care, for instance — several of the governor’s line-item vetoes are painful.

DeSantis rejected more than $30 million to expand a program designed to help seniors age in place. The money would have expanded PACE — Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly — in multiple counties, including Pinellas.

In Hillsborough County, where human trafficking is a serious problem, the governor vetoed $800,000 for the CHANCE program, an effort by the Children’s Network of Hillsborough to support children who have been victims of this heinous crime.

Similarly, DeSantis vetoed $541,600 for an Orange County-based Lifeboat project to develop a screening tool to improve the early identification of trafficked or at-risk children in medical settings.

He also nixed several projects for individuals with disabilities and mental health conditions, including more than $950,000 for a South Florida culinary vocational training program.

All of this — the Medicaid debacle, the shameful vetoes — would be troubling enough. But a recent report from a Marion County grand jury paints an even darker picture. The report, out of the Fifth Judicial Circuit, slams the region’s Department of Children and Families for “failing catastrophically” to protect vulnerable children and seniors.

It cited a case where the state had investigated and visited a family 14 times before a child was murdered. Fourteen. The report says the defendant was indicted for first-degree felony murder on the same day the grand jury was empaneled.

Sickening.

The grand jury also highlighted systemic failures in elder abuse services, adding that the district, which includes Hernando County, is home to a disproportionately large retiree population.

There are accounts of vulnerable adults found lying in their own waste, neglected by their sole caregivers who themselves struggled with serious mental health, substance abuse, or other problems. In one case that involved a death, the caregiver was charged with manslaughter.

I could go on, but the message is clear: Florida’s priorities need to change. Children, families, the elderly, people with disabilities — they should be at the top of the list, not at the bottom. And the safety net they depend on should be strengthened.

Fortunately, in light of the Department of Children and Families report, lawmakers agree change is in order, and a group of state senators is planning to introduce legislation to overhaul the agency.

But Florida needs much more than agency reform.

With so many underfunded services for vulnerable Floridians, the diversion of Medicaid dollars for overtly political purposes raises legal questions and underscores just how indefensible and unforgivable it was.

Dick Batchelor is an Orlando business consultant and former Florida legislator who has spent decades advocating for Florida’s most vulnerable residents.