Stephanie Colombini
Stephanie Colombini joined WUSF Public Media in December 2016 as Producer of
Florida Matters,WUSF’s public affairs show. She’s also a reporter for WUSF’s Health News Florida project.
Stephanie was born and raised just outside New York City. She graduated from Fordham University in the Bronx, where she got her start in radio at NPR member station WFUV in 2012. In addition to reporting and anchoring, Stephanie helped launch the news department’s first podcast series,
Issues Tank.
Prior to joining the WUSF family, Stephanie spent a year reporting for CBS Radio’s flagship station WCBS Newsradio 880 in Manhattan. Her assignments included breaking news stories such as the 2016 bombings in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood and Seaside Park, NJ and political campaigns. As part of her job there, she was forced to – and survived – a night of reporting on New Year’s Eve in Times Square.
Her work in feature reporting and podcast production has earned her awards from the Public Radio News Directors, Inc. and the Alliance for Women in Media.
While off-the-clock, you might catch Stephanie at a rock concert, on a fishing boat or anywhere that serves delicious food.
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Although the lower positivity rate for new cases is a promising sign, COVID-19 related deaths remain high. The greater Tampa Bay region accounted for nearly half the deaths recorded Wednesday. -
Activists say the bill is an attack on transgender kids. -
Florida health officials reported 5,271 new COVID-19 cases and 46 deaths Tuesday for a total of more than 2.2 million infections and more than 35,600 fatalities since the beginning of the pandemic. The Florida Division of Emergency Management reports that as of Tuesday morning, more than 8.6 million people in the state have received a vaccine including more than 2.7 million who have received a first dose and more than 5.8 million who have completed the series.People seeking vaccine doses at federally-supported clinics in Florida, Monday, were about evenly split between the two-dose Pfizer vaccine and the single dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine. This comes after a pause on use of the J&J vaccine was lifted. Federal regulators ordered the temporary halt on administration of the J&J vaccine over very rare instances of people developing blood clots.State legislators are united in an effort to improve the website people use to apply for unemployment benefits after the site crashed last spring as it was inundated with people seeking benefits at the start of the pandemic. However, in the final days of the annual legislative session, lawmakers remain divided over a proposal to increase the maximum weekly unemployment benefit from $275 to $375.Members of a Southwest Florida family accused of selling a toxic industrial bleach as a cure for the coronavirus through their church, have been indicted on federal charges. Last year a federal judge ordered Mark Grenon and his sons to stop selling the substance through Genesis II Church of Health and Healing in Bradenton, but they continued selling it anyway. -
State health officials reported 5,571 new COVID-19 cases and 83 deaths, Wednesday for a total of more than 2.1 million cases and more than 35,000 deaths statewide since the beginning of the pandemic. More than 8.2 million people in Florida have been vaccinated so far, including more than 2.9 million people who have received a first dose and more than 5.3 million who have completed the series.The University of South Florida is studying whether those with a history of allergies are more at risk for severe reactions from COVID-19 vaccines.The Florida Senate continues to consider a bill that would increase the cap on unemployment benefits from $275 a week to $375 a week, although Gov. Ron DeSantis has voiced opposition to the move.Sarasota Health officials are holding a pop-up vaccine clinic on Saturday for 16 and 17-year-olds.Sarasota is currently experiencing a surge in new COVID-19 infections and reduced vaccine demand. -
In order to vaccinate enough people to achieve herd immunity, Dr. Marissa Levine with USF Health says community leaders need to engage with those hesitant to get shots. -
Officials say the wastewater being released into Tampa Bay is not radioactive, but it does contain a lot of nutrients that can fuel algal blooms. Scientists say it will take time to see if damage occurred. -
After more than a week of reporting fewer than 100 COVID-19-related deaths each day — sometimes much fewer — the state recorded 109 on Thursday. -
Primarily restricting vaccine access to older Floridians while the virus continues to spread puts essential workers at risk and gives variants a chance to gain a foothold in the community, says infectious disease expert Dr. Glenn Morris.
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State health officials reported 3,312 COVID-19 cases, Monday and 81 deaths. Gov. Ron DeSantis says Florida’s vaccine eligibility will be expanded to any one 60 and older on March 15. Florida Ag Commissioner Nikki Fried is criticizing DeSantis’ vaccine rollout, saying it should be easier for medically vulnerable people to prove they’re eligible. DeSantis is criticizing the $1.9 trillion federal stimulus package, saying it penalizes states like Florida where officials reopened the economy relatively quickly. DeSantis is calling on the federal government to revise its distribution model, arguing that money should be allocated on a per-capita basis. Elected officials and advocates in Palm Beach County say the state should prioritize vaccines for farmworkers. -
Starting next week, people ages 60 and older will be able to get shots. The governor said the state will continue to use five-year age brackets to expand eligibility moving forward.
