A worsening coronavirus outbreak in Florida shows no signs of slowing down, after the state set what was by far its single-day record for new Covid-19 cases Friday, while also setting yet another hospitalization record as Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) persists in downplaying the health crisis.
Florida reported 22,783 new cases on Friday, 1,100 more than the previous record of 21,683 on July 31.
The 13,427 reported hospitalizations also was a new high, and the surge has led numerous hospitals across the state to postpone elective surgeries in an attempt to free up resources.
Deaths, which lag behind increases in cases and hospitalizations, are also on the rise, with 199 reported Friday.
49.3%. That’s the percentage of Florida residents who are fully vaccinated against Covid-19, according to the Mayo Clinic, a shade lower than the U.S. as a whole, which reached 50% on Friday.
DeSantis has signed orders forbidding vaccine passports and mask mandates in the state, but the mask mandate ban only applies to governments, not private businesses. That exception allowed Walt Disney World, which attracted around 58 million visitors per year before the pandemic, to put an indoor mask mandate back in place.
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