Florida Has Record High Number Of New Covid-19 Coronavirus Cases

Remember when the Office of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) issued a press release on October 27 with the headline, “Florida Reaches Lowest Case Rate in the Nation?” That was, by the way, after Florida had experienced “one of the biggest summer spikes in the country,” in the words of Ed Browne, writing for Newsweek.

Well, so much for the “lowest case rate. On Thursday, Florida set a new record for the number of reported Covid-19 cases in a day with 31,758. That’s higher than the previous record of 27,669, set back on August 26, according to Andrea Torres and David Selig reporting for Local10.com. So if you are planning a Winter getaway to the Sunshine State anytime soon, you may want to keep a close eye on the news.

The following News4JAX segment covered Thursday’s new record:

Then on Friday, the state broke the record yet again with 32,850 new reported cases, based on data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Prior to the pandemic, Florida has long been a popular Winter getaway destination, probably more so than Prospect Creek Camp, Alaska. Right now, the temperature in Miami, Florida, is a balmy 78° F, compared to 9° F in Prospect Creek. The peak travel season to Florida tends to start around Thanksgiving and extend through mid-April, according to Andrea M. Rotondo writing for The Points Guy (TPG), an American travel website and blog. So the Florida Governor’s October 27 press release came a little in advance of this peak season, which may or may not have been a concidence.

Regardless, looks like that press release may have been a bit of a “premature declaration,” though. After all, you don’t brush your hair in the middle of a roller coaster ride, start making wedding plans in the middle of a first date, or tout a low case rate when the you are still in the middle of a pandemic. As we’ve seen multiple times during this pandemic, things that are premature can leave much disappointment and a big mess.

The following tweet from Daniel Uhlfelder, a lawyer in Florida, suggested that “DeSantis has declared victory over Covid-19” on multiple occasions throughout the pandemic:

Of course, “declared victory” is a subjective term. Nevertheless, it does seem like Florida has had premature relaxations of Covid-19 precautions throughout the pandemic. Covid-19 precautions like face mask wearing, social distancing, and vaccination are a bit like showering. You don’t wait until the middle of date to say, “oh, pardon me while I go take a shower.” Instead, you should maintain an acceptable level of hygiene that wouldn’t make racoons hold their noses.

Similarly, as long as the pandemic remains a national emergency, Covid-19 precautions should be maintained, especially prior to any possible anticipated surges, such as the one that’s occurring right now. The current Winter surge was by no means a complete surprise. I warned about a potential surge this Winter back in August and then again in November. Yet, many people continued to act as if the pandemic were like the TV series Game of Thrones, somehow over.

Throughout much of the pandemic, DeSantis hasn’t exactly been super encouraging about face mask wearing and social distancing. In fact, his administration has even prevented local officials from requiring such measures, as I have previously covered for Forbes. In the following tweet from The Hill, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Florida) claimed that “there is no one else in the entire United States, I think, that has done more to make it harder to keep people healthy than Ron DeSantis:”

DeSantis has also fought against Covid-19 vaccination requirements, even though Florida has lagged about half the states in the U.S. in vaccination coverage. According to a list compiled by Katie Adams for Becker’s Hospital Review, as of 6 am EDT on December 22, with 62.99 percent of their population fully vaccinated, Florida ranked 23rd out of 50 states plus Washington, DC.

You might not jump at the chance to eat an entry that came in 23rd out of 51 in a baking contest. Such a ranking in vaccination coverage isn’t exactly “winning” either. Yet, the Governor’s October 27 press release included the following quote from DeSantis: “Without mandates or lockdowns, Covid-19 cases in Florida have decreased 90% since August. In addition to cases, hospitalizations have plummeted in our state. This has been accomplished by making monoclonal antibody treatments and vaccines widely available throughout our state while protecting Floridians from government overreach.”

Umm, Covid-19 cases tend to drop in a state after a Covid-19 surge in the same way that partygoers leave your house after they’ve eaten all the food and drunk all your beer. Once the viruses have infected so many people, they essentially run out of people to infect and move to other areas where more susceptible people may be available. Sure vaccination may have helped bring down the number of cases. But it’s not as if Florida has been leading the nation in vaccination coverage.

The change in seasons coupled with the lack of adequate Covid-19 precautions likely led to the current Winter surge. Yes, the Omicron variant of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) may be further fueling the current Winter surge. But don’t blame the surge solely on the Omicron variant. Covid-19 cases were already on the upswing in different parts in the U.S. in November, prior to the spread of the Omicron variant. Will this Winter surge prevent politicians from making premature declarations of victory over the pandemic in the future? It may be a bit premature to say.