By Chris Persaud April 15, 2023
Source: The Palm Beach Post
Photo / Image Source: Unsplash, Florida has removed more than 32,000 COVID-19 cases from its official tally without explaining why.
The state Department of Health said Friday in its biweekly report that 7,537,137 residents since the beginning of the pandemic had been infected by the disease. It claimed 7,569,449 on March 31.
The cut is equivalent to 17% of infections the state has logged so far this year.
A department spokeswoman could not be immediately reached for comment late Friday when it posted its report. The report did not explain the decrease. The department has posted nothing on its Twitter page since Thursday and nothing on its Facebook page since Jan. 13.
Florida used to send weekly statistics to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
But the state Health Department said last week that it had paused that practice to update its reporting procedures to match the CDC’s expanded its definition of a COVID case. The definition now includes test results from over-the-counter kits and tests performed on the dead.
Why the CDC’s loosening of what counts as a COVID case caused Florida’s tally to drop is unclear.
Meanwhile, other metrics continue to point to declining severity of the respiratory disease across Florida.
Wastewater, which reveals coronavirus trends sooner than official case counts, shows viral levels rising slowly in Alachua County, home to Gainesville and the University of Florida.
Testing found 319 coronavirus particles per milliliter of sewage, Boston-based private laboratory Biobot Analytics said Wednesday. That’s a 30% increase since March 30. But still 83% less than late January.
Readings last week from Leon County, home to Tallahassee, revealed rising levels there, too. But Biobot has yet to report new results this week.
Should you mask up indoors? The CDC can’t issue indoor masking recommendations in Florida due to lack of data from the state.
Death toll increases again
204 deaths were added to Florida’s COVID death toll in the two weeks ending Friday. That’s fewer than the 444 people state health officials recorded March 17-31. Fatalities can take weeks to enter official statistics. (Source: Florida Department of Health).
87,799 Floridians killed, excluding more than 3,000 that state auditors discovered in 2020, which the state Health Department did not count.
Florida vaccination rates still among nation's worst
30.4% — Floridians 65 and older who have gotten the latest booster*
42.6% — Seniors boosted nationwide**
11.4% — Floridians up to date on shots
16.7% — Americans up to date
More than 7.5 million infected in Florida, which is more than 1 in 3 residents. *Those 65 and older comprise the vast majority of COVID deaths. **Only seniors in Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana and Tennessee have less protection than those in Florida.
Have you taken the COVID-19 Vaccine? Was it by mandate? Mandated by who? When?
Share the wealth of health with your friends and family by sharing this article with 3 people today.
If this article was helpful to you, donate to the Shidonna Raven Garden and Cook E-Magazine Today. Thank you in advance.
Comentarios