COVID-19 pandemic in Florida
On March 1, 2020, the U.S. state of Florida officially reported its first two COVID-19 cases, in Manatee and Hillsborough counties. However, there is abundant evidence that community spread of COVID-19 began in Florida much earlier, perhaps as early as the first week of January.[4] On March 11, Governor Ron DeSantis denied that there was community spread of COVID-19 in Florida, and waited until April 1 to issue a statewide stay at home order.[5][6] On May 4 the state of Florida removed 171 presumed COVID-19 cases with onset in January and February from its official COVID-19 database.[4]
| COVID-19 pandemic in Florida | |
|---|---|
.svg.png) Confirmed COVID-19 cases by county as of August 14, 2020.[1] | |
.svg.png) COVID-19 cases per 100k residents by county as of August 10, 2020, using solely confirmed resident cases by county and excluding non-residential cases.[1] | |
 Confirmed new cases of COVID-19 by county over the 14 days preceding August 10, 2020.[1] | |
| |
| Disease | COVID-19 |
| Virus strain | SARS-CoV-2 |
| Location | Florida |
| Index case | Hillsborough County, Manatee County[2] |
| Arrival date | March 1, 2020[2] |
| Confirmed cases | 576,094 [1][3] |
| Hospitalized cases | 34,194 [1][lower-alpha 1] |
Deaths | 9,674 (residents + non-residents) [1][3] 9,480 (total) [1][3] |
| Government website | |
| floridahealthcovid19.gov | |
.jpg)
| Part of a series on the |
| COVID-19 pandemic |
|---|
 |
|
|
|
International response |
|
Medical response |
|
.svg.png){kind=small} |
On August 17, Florida public health officials reported 2,760 new COVID-19 cases and 87 deaths, increasing state totals since onset of the pandemic to 576,094 cases and 9,674 deaths (9,539 resident deaths, 135 non-resident deaths).[7] During the months of June and July 2020 the number of COVID-19 cases in Florida increased over eight-fold, from 56,830 on June 1 to 470,386 on July 31. COVID-19 deaths lag by several weeks behind case counts, but by the end of July, Florida set new death records on four consecutive days, culminating in 257 deaths on July 31. Since June 1 the seven-day rolling average of new COVID-19 cases in Florida increased nearly thirteen-fold, from 726 new cases per day on June 1 to 9,725 new cases per day as of July 31. The seven-day rolling average of COVID-19 deaths increased nearly six-fold in that time-span, from an average of 29.7 newly reported deaths per day on June 1 to 170 deaths per day as of July 31.[7]
As of August 2020, Florida has the second highest number of confirmed cases in the United States after California[8] and was the second state to report over 500,000 confirmed cases.[9] Compared to worldwide provinces/subdivisions, Florida ranks third in confirmed cases behind the Brazilian state of São Paulo, and the aforementioned U.S. state of California, but Florida has a higher percentage of population infected. If Florida were its own nation, it would have the sixth most cases globally, with only the United States, Brazil, India, Russia, and South Africa reporting higher confirmed case counts.[10]
Timeline
February 29, 2020: Florida state health laboratories in Tampa, Jacksonville, and Miami are able to process COVID-19 tests locally rather than sending them to federal labs, cutting processing time from 3–5 days to 1–2 days.[13]
Initial cases (March 2020)
March 1: Florida becomes the tenth state to confirm its first COVID-19 cases: one in Manatee County, and one in Hillsborough County with a woman who had recently returned from Italy.[14]
March 3: The Florida Department of Health sets up a 24-hour COVID-19 hotline.[15] A third presumptive positive case in Hillsborough County is reported.[16][17]
March 5: A new case is announced involving an elderly man with severe underlying health conditions in Santa Rosa County who had recently traveled outside the United States.[18] The Department of Health announces three new cases late on March 6, two in Broward County and one in Lee County. Officials also announce two deaths.[19]
March 8: Publix starts to limit the amount of certain items per customer because some shoppers began to hoard items like toilet paper and other essential items.[20]
March 9: Florida House members announce that five members attended a conference with infected COVID-19 participants,[21] and DeSantis declares a State of Emergency.[22] Nine new cases are announced, bringing the total cases from 14 to 23.[23][24] Princess Cruises terminates a planned stop of the cruise ship Caribbean Princess in Grand Cayman after it was discovered that two of its crew members had recently transferred from Grand Princess in California [25]. The cruise ship is ordered to anchor off the coast of Fort Lauderdale while its passengers and crew could be tested for coronavirus. Furthermore, a fourth Princess Cruises cruise ship, Regal Princess, is placed on a "no sail order" off the Florida coast after it was discovered that two of its crew members had recently transferred from Grand Princess in California.[26]
March 10: The first case in Alachua County is confirmed.[28]
March 11: UF Health Shands Hospital confirm they are treating their first patient with a case of coronavirus, but decline to say whether it was the same person who tested positive for the virus earlier in the week.[28] The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) award Florida $27 million to help quell the pandemic.[29]
March 13: It is confirmed that Mayor of Miami Francis X. Suarez had contracted the virus.[30][31] The Department of Health confirms that an Orange County resident died in California after contracting COVID-19 while traveling.[32]
March 14: Orlando International Airport confirms that one of its Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents had tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total of TSA agents across the United States to have the virus to five after four other TSA agents at Mineta San Jose International Airport in California tested positive.[33]
March 15: Thirty-nine new cases are announced in Florida.[34][35] Four of those new cases are in Miami-Dade County, and 17 are in Broward County.[36]
March 17: A male resident of an assisted living facility in Fort Lauderdale dies. Governor DeSantis orders bars and nightclubs to close for 30 days,[37] gyms announce that they would be closing,[38] and the first medical group offers drive through COVID-19 testing in Central Florida.[39]
March 18: Nineteen senior living facilities are suspected to be infected by the coronavirus.[40] Florida completes 1,132 diagnostic tests for COVID-19 and of 1,539 tests, 314 were confirmed as being positive.[34][35] The state has bought 2,500 testing kits.[40] In addition, congressman Mario Diaz-Balart from Miami tests positive for the coronavirus. After his diagnosis, he self-quarantines in his Washington, D.C. apartment.[41]
March 20: The number of positive test cases climb to 520.[1] A Pasco and a Broward County resident dies.[42][43] A man who returned to California after visiting Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando approximately two weeks prior dies from the virus.[44][45] DeSantis orders that restaurants use take-out and delivery only to prevent guests from eating at restaurants.[46]
March 21: Cases in Florida reach 763 presumptive positive cases.[47] By March 22, the total had exceeded 1,000 cases.[48]
March 27: 2,900 cases have been identified and at least 34 deaths have occurred due to COVID-19.[49] The number of deaths are expected to double every three days.[50]
March 30: Although Florida law does not allow retired state personnel to return to work until six months after their retirement, DeSantis makes an exception and allows the retired healthcare and front line workers to come back to work[51] In addition, he signs an Executive Order for Miami-Dade County, Broward County and Palm Beach County residents to stay at home.[52] The Department of Education announces that schools will not be able to resume in person classes until at least May 1.[53] After learning that some patients were leaving isolation and going out in public, the Seminole County requires those who were diagnosed with COVID-19 to stay at home until medically cleared.[54]
Lockdown & reopening (April–May 2020)
April 1: DeSantis issues a statewide stay-at-home order following growing pressure to do so.[55][6][56]
April 17: DeSantis allows some Florida beaches to reopen if done safely[57]
April 18 It is announced that schools would remain closed for the remainder of the semester.[58]
April 20: The Florida Department of Economic Opportunities releases a dashboard showing that 1.5 million unemployment claims were made during the last month.[59] The Florida National Guard assists with COVID-19 sample collections at a State Nursing home for Veterans in Pembroke Pines.[60] In addition, they have helped across Florida in more than 50,000 COVID-19 tests and numerous screenings at airports.[60]
April 21: Flagler County announces its beaches would reopen for exercising and fishing but not socializing,[61] and the sunbathing restriction was lifted on Brevard County.[62]
May 4: The state of Florida removed 171 presumed COVID-19 cases with onset in January and February from its official COVID-19 database.[4]
May 18: Broward County and Miami-Dade County enter Phase One of reopening.[63]
May 22: The Miami Beach City Commission votes that Miami-Dade hotels and beaches reopen by June 1, but that did not happen.[64]
May 27: Ocean Drive on Miami Beach is closed off to allow restaurants to expand their seating.[65] People are to along the sidewalks and in the closed off streets to maximize the restaurant capacities.[65]
Increase of cases (June 2020)
June 1: The Florida Keys reopened and lifted the roadblock.[66] Earlier in May, in a virtual round table, Miami-Dade Emergency Manager Frank Rollason said the county plans to test everyone coming into a shelter for COVID-19 and separate people who are ill or have symptoms from healthy people in different parts of the shelter.[67] June 1, he contradicted himself in an email and said the county plans to screen evacuees for symptoms, not test them.[68] The state hopes to have rapid testing by August or September and to be able to test people entering and exiting shelters by then.[69]
June 3: DeSantis announces that Florida could move into Phase 2 except south Florida, specifically Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach, which need to submit plans for reopening. Phase 2 in Florida begins, with bars allowed to open at 50% capacity with social distancing and sanitation.[70]
June 6: Publix confirms COVID-19 positive employee cases at two Central Florida stores in Lakeland.[71]
June 7: Florida has over 1,000 confirmed COVID-19 new cases each day for the fifth day in a row, totaling to 63,938 confirmed cases.[72]
June 10: Florida sees its third-highest single-day jump in COVID-19 cases since the beginning of the pandemic.[34][35] This date marks the seventh 1,000+ increase in cases within 8 days in Florida, totaling to 67,371 COVID-19 positive cases.[73] Despite these growing cases, events like the Miami-Broward Carnival are still planned to happen.[74] Furthermore, Miami Beach reopens with social distancing guidelines.[75]
June 11: Cases jump by 1,698, the largest increase in cases since March with the total number of COVID-19 cases at 69,069.
June 12: 1,902 more cases occur and the total number of cases reaches 70,971.[76] The record for highest number of cases is broken.[34][35]
June 13: Records continue to break for a third day in a row with 2,581 new coronavirus cases bringing the total number to 73,552.[77]
June 14: Florida reports over 2,000 new positive COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number to 75,568.[78] As the U.S. death toll tops 115,000, worry rises for Florida.[79]
June 15: Florida gains 1,758 cases, bringing the total number of cases to 77,326.[80]
June 16: Cases rise again as record breaking numbers are confirmed at over 2,700 new cases, bringing the total number of COVID-19 cases to 80,109.[81] Hawkers St. Pete restaurant in St. Petersburg temporary shuts down until further notice due to a spike of cases in the city and Phinellas County.[82]
June 17: The Florida Department of Health reports over 2,500 more new cases, with the total number of cases reaching 82,719 and the total deaths reaching 3,018.[83]
June 18: Florida records over 3,000 COVID-19 cases for the first time, bringing the total number of cases to 85,926, with 3,061 deaths.[84]
June 19: Florida records 3,822 more COVID-19 cases, bringing the total to 89,748 cases and 3,104 deaths.[85]
June 20: More than 4,000 cases are recorded, bringing the total to 93,797 cases and 3,144 deaths.[85]
June 21: According to the Florida Department of Health (DOH) COVID-19 Dashboard,[86] there are now 4,671 new cases, bringing the total number of positive cases to 97,291 and 3,161 deaths. Furthermore, the dashboard by Rebekah Jones, says "the DOH "Cases" include residents and non-residents, but exclude those who received positive anti-body test results".[87] Jones' dashboard records 105,772 total positive people, 3,254 deaths, and 25,171 recovered.[88] Jones' dashboard also says on this date there are 3,493 new cases. Although the dashboards do not have the same numbers, they show that there is an increase of COVID-19 cases in Florida.
June 22: 2,779 new positive cases are reported with the total number of cases being 100,217 and 3,173 deaths.[89]
June 23: Florida reports 103,503 cases and 3,238 deaths.[85] A 17-year old from Lee County who attended a 100-person church function dies from COVID-19. The teenager had been treated at home with azithromycin, hydroxychloroquine, and oxygen before being transferred to the Golisano Children's Hospital then to the Nicklaus Children's Hospital in Miami.[90]
June 24: Florida reports over 5,000 new COVID-19 cases, with a total of 109,014 cases and 3,281 deaths,[85] and a positive test rate of 20%.[91] As a result, New York, New Jersey and Connecticut imposes a 14-day quarantine on visitors from states with infection rates above a certain threshold, including Florida.[92] A study by Scripps Research Institute reports that COVID-19 may be mutating in Florida, making the virus more likely to infect cells.[93]
June 26: Florida reports 8,942 new cases, almost doubling the previous single-day record and bringing the total number of cases to 122,960 and the number of deaths to 3,366.[91]
June 28: Florida public health officials report 8,530 new COVID-19 cases, with a total of 141,075 cases and 3,419 deaths.[94]
June 29: Florida reports 5,409 new COVID-19 cases, with a total of 146,341 cases and 3,447 deaths.[34][35]
June 30: There are 6,012 new Florida COVID-19 cases, with a total of 152,434 cases and 3,505 deaths.[34][35]
During the month of June the seven day moving average of new COVID-19 cases in Florida increased nearly ten-fold, from 726 new cases per day on June 1 to 7,140 new cases on July 1, 2020.[34]
Increase of cases (July 2020)
July 1: Florida public health officials report 6,563 new COVID-19 cases and 45 deaths, totaling to 158,997 cases and 3,550 deaths.[34][35]
July 2: Florida reports 10,109 new COVID-19 cases—a new single day record—and 67 deaths, with a total of 169,106 cases and 3,617 deaths.[34] Florida's Department of Health stated that test results starting July 2 would include antigen test results received from the state public health laboratory and commercial and hospital laboratories.[95]
July 3: 9,488 new COVID-19 cases and 67 deaths are reported, totaling to 178,594 cases and 3,684 deaths.[96]An 11-year-old boy from Miami-Dade County dies from COVID-19 complications, making him the youngest person in Florida to die from COVID-19.[97]
July 4: Florida reports 11,445 new COVID-19 cases and 18 deaths, totaling to 190,052 cases and 3,702 deaths, breaking a new record.[34][35]
July 5: Florida reports 10,059 new COVID-19 cases and 29 deaths, increasing the cumulative totals since onset of the pandemic to 200,111 cases and 3,731 deaths.[34][35]
July 7: Florida reports 7,361 new COVID-19 cases and 63 deaths, totaling to 213,794 cases and 3,841 deaths.[34][35]
July 8: Florida reports 10,044 new COVID-19 cases and 48 deaths, totaling to 223,783 cases and 3,889 Florida resident deaths.[34][35]
July 9: This is the first day Florida reports over 100 deaths. Florida health officials report 8,948 new COVID-19 cases and 120 deaths, with a total of 232,718 cases and 4,009 deaths.[34][35]
July 12: There are a record number of new cases reported—15,299 new COVID-19 cases and 45 deaths—increasing the cumulative totals since onset of the pandemic to 269,811 cases and 4,242 deaths.[34][35]
July 13: 12,343 new COVID-19 cases and 35 deaths reported, increasing the cumulative totals since onset of the pandemic to 282,435 cases and 4,277 deaths.[34][35]
July 14: 9,261 new COVID-19 cases and 132 deaths reported, totaling to 291,629 cases and 4,409 deaths.[98] Miami is declared the epicenter of the pandemic by Dr Lilian Abbo, chief of infection prevention at Jackson Health System.[99]
July 15: 10,181 new COVID-19 cases (10,087 Florida residents and 94 non-Florida residents) and 112 deaths reported, increasing the total to 301,810 cases and 4,521 deaths.[100] Daily new cases were predicted to remain high in South Florida in the next two weeks.[101]
July 19: 12,523 new COVID-19 cases and 87 deaths, increasing the cumulative totals since onset of the pandemic to 350,047 cases and 4,982 deaths.[34][35]
July 20: 10,508 new COVID-19 cases and 87 deaths, totaling to 360,394 cases and 5,072 deaths.[34][35]
July 23: 10,239 new COVID-19 cases and a daily state record of 173 deaths, increasing the cumulative totals since onset of the pandemic to 389,868 cases and 5,518 deaths.[34][35]
July 24: 12,462 new COVID-19 cases and 135 deaths, totaling to 402,312 cases and 5,653 deaths.[102] A longtime staffer of Rep. Vern Buchanan died of the disease after being hospitalized 9 days previously.[103]
July 30: Florida sets coronavirus death toll record for third consecutive day with 253 new deaths.[104] 9,943 new COVID-19 cases are also reported, increasing the cumulative totals since onset of the pandemic to 461,379 cases and 6,586 deaths.[105] July 30's 253 deaths are Florida's largest single day death toll since the start of the pandemic, 30 higher than yesterday's record of 216 deaths[104].
Between July 30 and August 5, many state-run test sites were closed due to Hurricane Isaías.[106] Test sites in some western counties not in the hurricane's path remained open but the closure of all sites in Miami-Dade, Orange and other severely impacted counties clearly suppressed the number of COVID-19 cases reported.[107] The hurricane largely missed Florida, striking North Carolina instead, where testing sites remained open despite the state of emergency.[108]
Response
State government
On March 1, Governor DeSantis declared a public health emergency after two cases were confirmed in Manatee County and Hillsborough County.[109] On March 17, he ordered all bars and nightclubs to be closed for 30 days, extended school closures to April 15, and cancelled state-mandated school testing.[110]
By the third week of the pandemic's presence in Florida, DeSantis began attracting criticism for the state's slow response to the pandemic, particularly for deferring beach closings to local governments during spring break while vacationers continued to congregate. The Miami Herald's editorial board wrote an editorial condemning DeSantis inaction in requesting help from the federal government, while noting his vocal support of U.S. President Donald Trump.[111][112] Speculation mounted that DeSantis' decision not to lock down the state was influenced by business interests, instead of health experts. Business lobbyists including the Florida Chamber of Commerce urged the Governor not to "take drastic measures that might shut down the state's economy".[113] On March 27, more than 900 health care workers signed a letter asking DeSantis to order citizens to shelter-in-place, and take other measures to slow the spread of COVID-19. A similar letter written by Doctors for America was signed by 500 health care professionals a few days earlier.[114]
On March 27, DeSantis expanded a previous order requiring airline travelers from New York City to self-quarantine for fourteen days to include people who enter from Louisiana via Interstate 10.[115]
On March 28, an emergency alert was sent to cell phones throughout Florida from the state's Surgeon General, Dr. Scott A. Rivkees, regarding public safety among those 65 and older and those with medical conditions, as well as the full population.[116]
On March 30, DeSantis issued a stay-at-home order for the South Florida counties of Broward, Miami-Dade, Palm Beach, and Monroe, where over 58% of the state's coronavirus cases were concentrated. He stated that the order would remain in effect at least until the middle of May.[117]
On April 1, DeSantis issued a stay-at-home order for the entire state, effective for 30 days, after a call with President Trump. This followed criticism from experts that more strict measures were necessary to contain the virus.[55][118][119]
On June 1, Desantis extended the statewide moratorium on evictions and foreclosures another 30 days, lasting through July 1.[120] Residents of Florida who receive unemployment payments were confused in mid-June when the state of Florida switched their payments from weekly to bi-weekly, with no apparent notice.[121]
On June 16, DeSantis said 260 Orlando International Airport workers tested positive for COVID-19. He also said that the increase of cases was due to an increase of testing and that even though cases are increasing "they are not rolling back".[122] Orlando airport said this was false, and that only 2 out of 500 employees tested positive.[123]
The New York governor, Andrew Cuomo, is pondering the idea of quarantining people who travel from Florida to New York due to concern of rising COVID-19 cases in Florida. They are monitoring for an influx of cases of people traveling from Florida.[124] On June 20, DeSantis said that he is cracking down on restaurants not practicing strict social distancing guideline. He also noted that the new cases are trending in the younger generation, with much of the cases being people between the ages of 20 and 35 years old.[125]
On June 23, DeSantis said that Florida bars and restaurants now run the risk of losing their liquor licenses in violation of the state's social distancing guidelines.[126] 13 employees and at least 28 patrons of The Knight's Pub tested positive for COVID-19, resulting in The Knight's Pub losing their liquor license.[127] Due to the surge of COVID-19 cases, some hospitals, like Palm Beach Gardens and JFK medical centers, reported having no open ICU beds. However, State Surgeon General Dr. Scott Rivkes, told hospital to not report COVID patients in ICUs.[128]
The same day, Florida banned liquor sales at bars.[129] However, strip clubs remain open.[130] As of June 26, 660 inmates and 24 staff at the Homestead Correctional Institution tested positive for COVID-19 and 23 deaths have been accounted for at the Institution due to the virus.[131]
County responses
Schools
On June 10, it was announced that Broward County and Palm Beach County are considering twice-a-week school for the fall.[132] On June 16, Broward County announced that schools will reopen on August 16 with a hybrid of in-person and online education.[133]
Masks
On June 23, mayor of Miami-Dade County, Carlos Gimenez said police will be enforcing rules concerning wearing masks in public places and social distancing.[134] On June 25, Palm Beach County started enforcing a mask mandate.[135] On June 26, Key West implemented a mandatory mask law, making it punishable either by citation or a $500 fine and they canceled 4 July fireworks.[136] At the end of June, the commissioners for St. Johns County voted 4–1 against requiring masks indoors.[137] Less than two weeks later, one of the St. Johns commissioners who had voted against masks was hospitalized in critical condition with a COVID-19 diagnosis.[138]
In August 2020, Marion County, Florida's sheriff's office announced that deputies and visitors to the police stations would be forbidden from wearing masks.[139][140]
Curfews
Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez signed order to close beaches starting Friday, July 3, and ending Tuesday, July 7, with a limit of gatherings to 50 people.[141] Broward County and Palm Beach County soon after followed Miami-Dade's example and decided to close their beaches for 4 July too.[142]
On July 2, Mayor Gimenez ordered a 10 p.m.-6 a.m. curfew. He also ordered all on-site dining to close from 12:01 a.m. to 6 a.m. daily at restaurants with seating for more than eight people. Both orders were to last until further notice.[143]
Contact tracing
On July 7, DeSantis announced that Florida had received federal grants under the CARES Act to hire contact tracers. According to the state's daily report for July 6 out of 213,794 confirmed cases, over 40% had still not been contacted.Contact tracing has met with challenges as contact tracers have been unable to track the spread at crowded parties because young people have not wanted to share the information with contact tracers.[144][145]
Statistics
On April 12, the Tampa Bay Times reported a discrepancy between the counts of coronavirus deaths in the state: the Florida Department of Health had reported 419, while Florida's medical examiners reported 461. The health department counts only Florida residents and organizes the data by the person's place of residence (to avoid double-counting); in contrast, the medical examiners count anyone who dies in the state, which includes visitors. The health department's analysis causes several days of reporting delay, which is a further reason it is difficult to compare the numbers.[146] In response to the Tampa Bay Times article, Florida officials stopped the release of the medical examiners' list, saying that it should be reviewed and possibly redacted, but did not publicly specify what exactly they wanted to redact.[147][148]
The Florida Department of Health's "hospitalizations" statistic includes everyone who has ever been admitted for inpatient treatment while diagnosed with COVID-19. The number does not adjust downward when people are discharged or die; it can only ever increase. The number of people who are currently hospitalized would be smaller, but, as of June 2020, the Florida Department of Health does not report that detail, according to the Atlantic Magazine's COVID Tracking Project.[149]
Firing of Rebekah Jones and creation of alternate COVID-19 dashboard for Florida
On May 5, Florida's Department of Health fired Rebekah Jones, an official who had led a team of data scientists and public health experts in their documentation of Florida COVID-19 cases. Jones claimed that the state's Department of Health wanted data on Florida's coronavirus dashboard changed to support Governor Ron DeSantis' plans to resume economic activity. She further contended that she was fired for refusing to alter the information. A statement from DeSantis' office denied this, instead claiming that insubordination and unilateral decision-making by Jones regarding what to add to the dashboard was the cause of the firing. DeSantis added that Jones contradicted state epidemiologists.[150]
On June 14, Rebekah Jones created a dashboard website with the "real" numbers for Florida. She claims that in the current Florida Health dashboard, positive tests are only counted once per a person but a person who tests negative is counted towards the data every time. She says that reporting total tests instead of total people lowers the percentage of the COVID-19 true positivity rate.[151] In a week when cases spiked for Florida, on 24 June, the Tampa Bay Times reported that the Florida acting director of infectious disease prevention and investigations section in the Bureau of Epidemiology's Division of Disease Control and Health Protection, Scott Pritchard, resigned. He was most recently leading a team of epidemiologists involved in the COVID-19 response. The paper reported that when asked for a reaction, DeSantis again tried to discredit Jones' alternate dashboard.[152] Jones responded on Twitter with "Good for you, Scott!".[153]
Impacts
.jpg)
Early in March, the pandemic began having an impact throughout Florida as state and local government, businesses, and public institutions took measures to slow the spread of the virus.[154]
Commercial entities
On March 12, Walt Disney Parks & Resorts announced that the Walt Disney World Resort would close from March 15 to end of May, later announcing that the parks and resorts would stay closed indefinitely. Universal Parks & Resorts also announced that Universal Orlando Resort would close from March 15 until at least the end of the month, also later announcing that the parks and resorts would stay closed until May 31.[155][156] Other theme parks in Florida such as SeaWorld Orlando, Legoland Florida, and Busch Gardens Tampa Bay have also decided to close from March 13 until further notice.[157][158]
Despite the increase of COVID-19 cases in Florida theme parks reopened in mid-July. On July 11, Disney reopened Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom and will reopen Epcot and Disney's Hollywood Studios on July 15.[159]
Elder care facilities
On March 2, AARP warned Florida nursing homes to prepare and provide adequate supplies of protective wear[160] and the Florida Department of Health issued guidelines to stop the spread of COVID-19.[161] On March 11, DeSantis placed limits on who can visit nursing homes.[162] On March 23, the Miami Herald, seeking the name of every elder care facility that had a positive test for coronavirus, filed a public records request with the Florida Department of Health and the Agency for Health Care Administration. The governor's office refused to release the information. On April 9, the Miami Herald provided the required notification to the State of Florida that they would be filing a lawsuit to obtain the information. After receiving a call from the governor's office, however, the Miami Herald's law firm, Holland & Knight, dropped the case. The Miami Herald planned to proceed with a different law firm.[163] The government subsequently released a list that by April 21 included 313 facilities where either caregivers or residents had tested positive. The list was incomplete and did not provide data on the number of individuals infected or deceased.[164]
Public universities
On March 10, Joseph Glover, the provost of the University of Florida (UF), sent out a recommendation to UF professors to transition their classes online.[165][166] The following day, UF announced all its classes for the spring semester will be transitioned online by the following Monday, and encouraged students to return to their hometowns.[28]
On March 11, Florida State University announced that classes will be moved online from March 23 to April 5, with in-person classes expected to resume on April 6.[167] The Board of Governors of the State University System of Florida directed all state universities to make plans to transition into remote learning effective immediately. Essential functions, such as dining and library services are still operational.[168] Florida International University in Miami announced that it will transition to remote learning starting from March 12 until at least April 4.[169] The University of South Florida in Tampa announced that all classes will consist of remote instruction for the rest of Spring 2020 semester.[170] On March 17, University of Central Florida announced that it would be canceling graduation,[171] two days later one of their students tested positive for COVID-19.[172] On June 10, Florida International University received a $1 million grant from the National Institute of Health for vaccines.[173]
Parks
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection announced on March 22 that they would be closing all state parks to the public.[174] Miami Beach reopened a number of public parks on April 29. Over the following weekend, authorities issued over 7,000 verbal warnings to people who were not wearing face masks. Most were at South Pointe Park. On the morning of May 4, the city announced that South Pointe Park was closed again until further notice.[175]
For the Fourth of July weekend:[176]
▪ Palm Beach County: All beaches — public and private — closed Friday through Sunday. Restaurants and retail establishments within beach parks and boat ramps were allowed to remain open.
▪ Collier County beaches closed from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Marco Island closed city-owned pedestrian access to the beach and some hotels did the same because local leaders expressed worry that Floridians might drive to the area with the South Florida closures.
▪ Pinellas County leaders did not plan to close beaches for Fourth of July weekend. But they expected big crowds.
▪ Lee County leaders kept their Southwest Florida beaches open. But Sanibel Island closed city-owned paid beach parking lots over the weekend.
▪ Brevard and Volusia county beaches remained open during the holiday weekend.
▪ Jacksonville: When announcing the new mask ordinance, Jacksonville city leaders said beaches would be open through the weekend.
Sports
Most of the state's sports teams were affected by the pandemic. Several leagues postponed or suspended their seasons starting March 12. Major League Baseball (MLB) canceled the remainder of spring training,[177] and announced that the season would be postponed indefinitely.[178] The National Basketball Association announced the season would be suspended for 30 days, affecting the Miami Heat and Orlando Magic.[179] The National Hockey League season was suspended indefinitely, affecting the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning.[180] The Miami Open, a major tennis tournament on the ATP Tour and WTA Tour was canceled for the first time in its history on March 12.[181]
Professional wrestling; state exceptions on sports
In the wake of sports cancellations, the professional wrestling promotions All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and WWE re-located their weekly television programs (which normally toured to different arenas each episode) to sites in Florida in mid-March, with AEW filming its AEW Dynamite program at Daily's Place in Jacksonville until April 1, and WWE filming or broadcasting all of its programming at its WWE Performance Center training facility in Orlando (including its flagship event WrestleMania, which was originally to be held at Tampa's Raymond James Stadium). Both promotions are filming behind closed doors with no audience and only essential staff present.[182][183][184][185] AEW re-located to a closed set in Norcross, Georgia on April 1, where it filmed content through April 3.[183][186]
On April 9, the Division of Emergency Management amended its state-wide stay-at-home order, considering employees of a "professional sports and media production with a national audience", if closed to the general public, as being essential workers.[187][188] The following Monday, April 13, Mayor of Orange County Jerry Demings confirmed that this change would allow WWE to continue its closed door tapings in the state, and were implemented following discussions with the office of Governor DeSantis. It was subsequently reported that WWE was warned of the stay-at-home restrictions by officials, but that DeSantis deemed the company's operations critical to Florida's economy, and approved the new exemption in response.[189][190]
The next day, DeSantis defended his decision, explaining that "if you think about it, we have never had a period like this in modern American history where you've had so little new content, particularly in the sporting realm", and suggested that other closed-door sporting events — such as golf (particularly, a proposed rematch between Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson) and NASCAR races — could also be held under the new exception.[187] Secretary of the Department of Business and Professional Regulation Halsey Beshears had also made a post on Twitter directed to the mixed martial arts promotion UFC on April 7, suggesting that his department could help sanction their events there (however, after it intended to hold UFC 249 and other fights at a tribal casino in California, the promotion suspended all events indefinitely on April 9, by request of its U.S. rightsholders ESPN Inc. and The Walt Disney Company).[191][187][192]
Orlando Sentinel columnists Mike Bianchi and Scott Maxwell questioned whether these actions were intended to help the state gain favor from the Trump administration; WWE owner and chairman Vince McMahon has been an ally of Trump, having made recurring appearances on WWE programming as a celebrity figure prior to his presidency, and being inducted to the celebrity wing of the WWE Hall of Fame in 2013.[193][194] The same day as Deming's announcement, America First Action — a super PAC led by McMahon's wife and former Administrator of the Small Business Administration, Linda McMahon — pledged $18.5 million on advertising in Florida for Trump's 2020 re-election campaign.[195][194] On April 14, McMahon was named to a federal advisory group on the "re-opening" of the country's economy, joining other notable sports figures; during the daily press briefing, Trump addressed him and UFC head Dana White (who is also a Trump ally) with the title "The Great".[196][197][193]
Following the implementation of this exception, several sporting events were announced for the state; on April 24, UFC announced that a new UFC 249 and two UFC Fight Night cards would be held in Jacksonville in May.[198] Two televised golf events benefiting COVID-19-related causes were scheduled for local courses, including TaylorMade Driving Relief at Seminole Golf Club (a skins game featuring Rory McIlroy, Dustin Johnson, Rickie Fowler and Matthew Wolff) on May 17,[199][200] and The Match: Champions for Charity at Medalist Golf Club in Hobe Sound—a four-ball competition by Turner Sports featuring Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson paired with Peyton Manning and Tom Brady.[201] On May 14, NASCAR announced a new June 14 date for its postponed Dixie Vodka 400 at Homestead–Miami Speedway.[202] On May 23, All Elite Wrestling returned to Jacksonville for its pay-per-view Double or Nothing (relocated from Las Vegas), with most of the event being held at Daily's Place, and a main event "Stadium Stampede" match within the confines of neighboring TIAA Bank Field.[203]
Return to play in professional sports
On May 23, the NBA confirmed that it was in talks with Walt Disney World in Orlando to use it as one or more centralized sites for the resumption of the NBA season.[204] On June 4, the league approved a plan to host the remainder of the season at Walt Disney World's ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex.[205] Major League Soccer similarly announced on June 10 that it would host a new early-season tournament at the same site, involving all 26 franchises.[206]
As part of the NHL's return-to-play, training facilities reopened on June 10.[207] On June 19, a number of COVID-19 cases were reported among team training facilities in Florida, including the Philadelphia Phillies (MLB) and Tampa Bay Lightning (NHL). The Toronto Blue Jays temporarily closed its facility in Dunedin after a player showed signs of symptoms. In combination with similar concerns regarding facilities in Arizona, all MLB spring training facilities were closed league-wide for cleaning.[208][209][210]
On June 24, WWE announced that multiple cases had been recorded among its staff, including performers and on-air personality Renee Young. WWE stated that it would now test all performers prior to its television filmings.[211]
See also
- Timeline of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
- COVID-19 pandemic in the United States – for impact on the country
- COVID-19 pandemic – for impact on other countries
References
- "Florida's COVID-19 Data and Surveillance Dashboard". Archived from the original on March 18, 2020. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
- "Department of Health Announces Two Presumptive Positive COVID-19 Cases in Florida". Florida Department of Health. March 1, 2020. Archived from the original on March 19, 2020. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
- "2019 Novel Coronavirus Response (COVID-19)". Florida Department of Health. May 10, 2020. Archived from the original on April 11, 2020. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
- "Coronavirus patients in Florida had symptoms as early as January". Palm Beach Post. May 5, 2020. Archived from the original on July 18, 2020. Retrieved July 19, 2020.
- "Is there community spread pf COVID-19 in Florida? DeSantis tries to clear it up". Miami Herald. March 11, 2020. Archived from the original on July 9, 2020. Retrieved July 19, 2020.
- Klas2, Mary Ellen; Contorno, Steve (April 1, 2020). "Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis issues statewide stay-at-home order". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on April 11, 2020. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
- "FL Dept. of Health COVID-19 Response Page". FL Dept. of Health COVID-19 Response Page. July 4, 2020. Archived from the original on April 11, 2020.
- CDC (July 14, 2020). "Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the U.S." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Archived from the original on March 2, 2020. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
- CDC (July 14, 2020). "Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the U.S." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Archived from the original on March 2, 2020. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
- "ArcGIS Dashboards". www.arcgis.com. Archived from the original on May 21, 2020. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
- "Florida's COVID-19 Data and Surveillance Dashboard". Florida Department of Health, Division of Disease Control and Health Protection. Retrieved May 30, 2020.
- "2019 Novel Coronavirus Response (COVID-19)". Florida Department of Health. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
- Jones, Nick; Henning, Allyson (March 1, 2020). "Florida can now test for coronavirus at state health labs, including Jacksonville". WKMG. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- "Governor: Florida has first cases of coronaviruses". MESH. March 2, 2020. Archived from the original on March 2, 2020. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
- Volz, Brianna (March 4, 2020). "Do you have coronavirus questions? Call this number". WKMG. Archived from the original on June 13, 2020. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- "Florida coronavirus update for Tuesday, March 3: Another 'presumptive positive' case in state reported". msn.com. Archived from the original on March 3, 2020. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
- "3rd Case of Coronavirus Infection Reported in Florida". Spectrum Bay News 9. March 3, 2020. Archived from the original on March 4, 2020. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
- Robinson, Kevin (March 5, 2020). "DeSantis: New presumptive positive case of coronavirus found in Santa Rosa County". Pensacola News Journal. Archived from the original on March 5, 2020. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
- Health, Florida Dept (March 6, 2020). ".@HealthyFla has announced 3 new presumptive positive Florida #COVID19 cases: 2 in Broward County that are isolated and 1 in Lee County that is deceased. A previously-announced case in Santa Rosa County is also deceased". Archived from the original on March 7, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
- "Publix sets purchase limits for supplies amid coronavirus". WKMG. March 8, 2020. Archived from the original on June 26, 2020. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
- Sandoval, Erin Dobrzyn, Erik (March 9, 2020). "Florida House members possibly exposed to coronavirus cleared to return to House floor". WKMG. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- Jankowski, Erin Dobrzyn, Jon (March 10, 2020). "Second Volusia County woman tests positive for coronavirus". WKMG. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- Llerena, Reinaldo. "Florida Department of Health announces 8 positive cases of COVID-19". 7 News Miami. WSVN-TVSunbeam Television Corp. Archived from the original on April 11, 2020. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
- "Florida Department of Health Announces New Positive COVID-19 Case in Florida". Florida Department of Health. Archived from the original on March 16, 2020. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
- "Grand Princess Updates". Princess. Archived from the original on March 4, 2020.
- "Another Princess cruise ship kept at sea pending virus tests". AP. March 9, 2020. Archived from the original on March 10, 2020. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
- "UF coronavirus: classes required to move online; Shands hospital has first coronavirus case". The Alligator. March 11, 2020. Archived from the original on March 13, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
- Iwasinski, Adrianna (March 11, 2020). "CDC awards Florida $27M to combat coronavirus: Here's what it will be used for". WKMG. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- Flechas, Joey (March 13, 2020). "Miami mayor tests positive for coronavirus after event with Brazilian President Bolsonaro". Miami Herald. Archived from the original on April 8, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
- Cardona, Alexi C. (March 13, 2020). "Miami Mayor Francis Suarez Tests Positive for Coronavirus". Miami New Times. Archived from the original on March 14, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
- @HealthyFla (March 14, 2020). "DOH has confirmed 25 new individuals have tested positive for COVID-19 in Florida. All are being cared for and isolated. One Orange County, FL resident tested positive for COVID-19 while traveling and has died in California. Visit Floridahealth.gov/COVID-19 for more information" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- Simmons, Roger. "TSA worker at Orlando International Airport tests positive for COVID-19". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on March 15, 2020. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
- "FL Dept. of Health COVID-19 Response Page". FL Dept. of Health COVID-19 Response Page. July 4, 2020. Archived from the original on April 11, 2020.
- "Florida COVID19 Case Line Data". open-fdoh.hub.arcgis.com. Archived from the original on July 21, 2020. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
- Ellen Klas, Mary. "The latest: 39 new Florida coronavirus cases revealed overnight as state tally hits 100". Miami Herald. Archived from the original on March 18, 2020.
- Dobrzyn, Erin (March 17, 2020). "Florida governor orders all nightclubs, bars to close for 30 days due to coronavirus". WKMG. Archived from the original on May 31, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- Gondar, Elizabeth (March 16, 2020). "YMCA, other Orlando-area gyms closing due to coronavirus concerns". WKMG. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- Bolden, Louis (March 17, 2020). "Medical group offers first drive-up coronavirus testing in Central Florida". WKMG. Archived from the original on June 12, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- Krischer Goodman, Cindy (March 18, 2020). "Florida coronavirus updates: As many as 19 senior living facilities feared infected". Sun Sentinel. Archived from the original on July 17, 2020.
- Rice, Katie (March 18, 2020). "Florida Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart tests positive for coronavirus". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on April 11, 2020. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
- "Florida Department of Health Updates New COVID-19 Cases, Announces One New Death Related to COVID-19, 11 a.m. Update" (Press release). Tallahassee: Florida Department of Health. March 20, 2020. Archived from the original on March 21, 2020. Retrieved March 21, 2020.
- "Florida Department of Health Updates New COVID-19 Cases, Announces One New Death Related to COVID-19, 6 p.m. Update" (Press release). Tallahassee: Florida Department of Health. March 20, 2020. Archived from the original on March 21, 2020. Retrieved March 21, 2020.
- Jankowski, Jon (March 20, 2020). "Man who died in California from coronavirus visited Disney World 2 weeks prior, report says". ClickOrlando. Archived from the original on March 20, 2020. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
- Plotkin, Dave (March 19, 2020). "Man dies of coronavirus after visiting Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando". Orlando Weekly. Archived from the original on March 20, 2020. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
- Dobrzyn, Erin (March 20, 2020). "Coronavirus: Florida governor bans all restaurant dining, orders gyms to close". WKMG. Archived from the original on June 30, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- Mower, Lawrence (March 21, 2020). "DeSantis considers new strategy in Florida coronavirus fight: isolation shelters". Miami Herald.
- Florida reports more than 1,000 cases of coronavirus Archived April 11, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, March 22, 2020. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
- "2,900 cases of COVID-19 in Florida; at least 34 deaths in the state". WPBF. March 27, 2020. Archived from the original on April 11, 2020. Retrieved March 27, 2020.
- Swisher, Skyler; Chokey, Aric (March 27, 2020). "'This is not going to be over in weeks.' Coronavirus deaths expected to double every four days in Florida". South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Archived from the original on April 11, 2020. Retrieved March 27, 2020.
- "DeSantis: Retired first responders, healthcare workers to be allowed to return to workforce to combat outbreak". Archived from the original on June 30, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- Manchester, Julia (April 1, 2020). "Florida governor issues statewide stay-at-home order". TheHill. Archived from the original on April 26, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- Wright, Colleen (March 30, 2020). "South Florida school districts follow state recommendation to stay online until May". Miami Herald. Archived from the original on May 5, 2020.
- Cutway, Adrienne (April 3, 2020). "Some Seminole County COVID-19 patients are still going out in public". WKMG. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- "Executive Order 20–91" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on April 2, 2020. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
- "Florida coronavirus update for Wednesday: DeSantis announces 30-day stay-home order for Florida". Orlando Sentinel. April 1, 2020. Archived from the original on April 11, 2020. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
- "Gov. Ron DeSantis gives some Florida beaches green light to reopen". CNBC. April 18, 2020. Archived from the original on May 21, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- "DeSantis Announces K-12 Schools Will Stay Closed for the Remainder of the School Year". NBC 6 South Florida. Archived from the original on May 26, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- "Delayed Unemployment Claims, Uncertainty Persist in Florida". www.mynews13.com. Archived from the original on May 27, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- Army Sgt. Leia Tascarini, Florida Army National Guard. "Florida Guard Aids COVID-19 Testing at Veterans Nursing Home". U.S.Dept of Defense. Archived from the original on April 20, 2020. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
- "Flagler County Beaches will reopen for exercising, fishing -- not socializing | News Break". News Break Flagler Beach, FL. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- "Brevard Cities Lift Beach Restrictions on Sunbathing, Group Activity". www.mynews13.com. Archived from the original on May 10, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- "'The New Normal': Broward, Miami-Dade Enter Phase One of Reopening". NBC 6 South Florida. Archived from the original on May 28, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- "Miami-Dade targets June 1 opening date for hotels, beaches following Miami Beach vote". The Real Deal Miami. May 22, 2020. Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- Vassolo, Martin (March 27, 2020). "Restaurants expand onto Ocean Drive roadway as they reopen after COVID-19 closures". Miami Herald. Archived from the original on June 7, 2020.
- FILOSA AND GOODHUE (June 1, 2020). "Tourists return to the Florida Keys as island chain lifts the roadblock and reopens". Miami Herald.
- Mazzei, Patricia (May 24, 2020). "What Happens if a Hurricane Hits During the Pandemic?". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on June 1, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
- Harris, Alex (June 1, 2020). "Coronavirus meets hurricane season as Florida adds hotels, screening to its shelter plan". Miami Herald. Archived from the original on June 30, 2020.
- "Coronavirus meets hurricane season as Florida adds hotels, screening to its shelter plan". InsuranceNewsNet. June 2, 2020. Archived from the original on June 10, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
- "Gov. DeSantis: Florida can move into Phase 2 on Friday; South Florida excluded". Archived from the original on June 4, 2020. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- Bouffard, Kevin. "Publix confirms COVID-19 cases at Lakeland store". The Ledger. Archived from the original on June 7, 2020. Retrieved June 7, 2020.
- Michelle, Marchante (June 7, 2020). "Florida coronavirus cases top 1,000 for fifth day in a row as testing steadily increases". Archived from the original on June 8, 2020.
- Staff, News4Jax (June 10, 2020). "7th 1,000-plus jump in 8 days as Florida coronavirus cases top 67,000". WJXT. Archived from the original on June 10, 2020. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
- "PressReader.com - Your favorite newspapers and magazines". www.pressreader.com. Archived from the original on June 10, 2020. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
- "Beaches Back Open in Miami-Dade With Plenty of New Rules". NBC 6 South Florida. Archived from the original on June 10, 2020. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
- "Home". Florida Department of Health COVID-19 Outbreak. Archived from the original on April 11, 2020. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
- Cohen, Howard (June 13, 2020). "With 2,581 new coronavirus cases, Florida hits a record high for the third day in a row". Archived from the original on June 14, 2020.
- Neal, David (June 14, 2020). "Florida's number of confirmed new COVID-19 cases exceeds 2,000 for second day in a row". Archived from the original on June 14, 2020.
- Linnane, Ciara. "Coronavirus update: U.S. death toll tops 115,000 amid growing worry about uptick in cases in Florida, Texas among others". MarketWatch. Archived from the original on June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
- "Home". Florida Department of Health COVID-19 Outbreak. Archived from the original on April 11, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
- "Home". Florida Department of Health COVID-19 Outbreak. Archived from the original on April 11, 2020. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
- "Popular St. Pete restaurant closes because of coronavirus concerns". WTSP. June 16, 2020.
- "Experience". experience.arcgis.com. Archived from the original on June 4, 2020. Retrieved June 17, 2020.
- "Experience". experience.arcgis.com. Archived from the original on June 4, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
- "CDC COVID Data Tracker". www.cdc.gov. Archived from the original on June 5, 2020. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
- "Experience". experience.arcgis.com. Archived from the original on March 18, 2020. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
- "Experience". experience.arcgis.com. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
- "Experience". experience.arcgis.com. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
- "Experience". experience.arcgis.com. Archived from the original on March 18, 2020. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
- Gluck, Frank (July 7, 2020). "Florida teen received unproven treatment at home before dying of COVID-19 at hospital, report says". USA Today. Fort Myers, Florida. Archived from the original on July 8, 2020. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
- "Record shattering 8,942 new COVID-19 cases in Florida on Friday". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. June 26, 2020. Archived from the original on June 26, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
- Kim, Noah Higgins-Dunn,Jasmine (June 24, 2020). "New York, New Jersey and Connecticut impose 14-day quarantine on travelers from coronavirus hotspot states". CNBC. Archived from the original on June 24, 2020. Retrieved June 24, 2020.
- Fox, Maggie. "Mutation could make coronavirus more infectious, study suggests". CNN. Archived from the original on June 27, 2020. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
- Thomas, Rachael (June 28, 2020). "Coronavirus in Florida: What you need to know Sunday, June 28". Naples Daily News.
- Pipitone, Tony (July 5, 2020). "Florida Health Officials Say Antigen Test Results Included in State COVID Reports". WTVJ. Archived from the original on July 20, 2020. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
On Thursday, July 2, Florida's Department of Health for the first time said test results would include "antigen test results" received from the state public health laboratory, as well as commercial and hospital laboratories.
- Boryga, Andrew (July 3, 2020). "Nearly 9,500 new COVID-19 cases in Florida; third-highest jump since crisis began". Sun Sentinel.
- Andone, Dakin. "An 11-year-old boy is Florida's youngest person to die from Covid-19 complications". CNN. Archived from the original on July 3, 2020. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
- "COVID-19: FLORIDA ADDS 9,261 CASES, PERCENT POSITIVITY RISES AGAIN, RECORD DEATHS". Boca News Now. July 14, 2020.
- AP (July 14, 2020). "Miami now 'epicenter' of coronavirus pandemic, top doctor says". ABC7 Los Angeles. Archived from the original on July 15, 2020. Retrieved July 15, 2020.
- "Florida Department of Health Updates New COVID-19 Cases, Announces One Hundred Twelve Deaths Related to COVID-19". Florida Health.
- "COVID-19 County Projections". Pandemic Central. July 15, 2020. Archived from the original on July 28, 2020.
- "City of West Palm Beach COVID-19 Update (July 24, 2020, 12:00PM)". West Palm Beach. July 24, 2020.
- Moran, Lee (July 25, 2020). "Florida GOP Congressman 'Devastated' After Longtime Staffer Dies From COVID-19". HuffPost. Archived from the original on July 25, 2020. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
- Lardieri, Alexa (July 30, 2020). "Florida Sets Daily Coronavirus Death Toll Record for Third Consecutive Day". US News.
- Mcnamara, Audrey (July 30, 2020). "Florida breaks state's single-day death record for third day in a row". CBS News.
- "Home". Florida Department of Health COVID-19 Outbreak. Archived from the original on April 11, 2020. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
- "With busiest Florida testing sites closed, new coronavirus cases drop significantly". ClickOrlando. August 3, 2020. Archived from the original on August 4, 2020. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
- "NC now tested by two states of emergency: Hurricane Isaias and the COVID-19 pandemic". Raleigh News&Observer. July 31, 2020. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
- Lapin, Tamar (March 2, 2020). "Florida declares public health emergency after two coronavirus cases". The New York Post. Archived from the original on March 2, 2020. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
- Rohrer, Gray; Skoneki, Mark (March 18, 2020). "DeSantis shuts down bars, extends schools closures across Florida to fight coronavirus". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on March 17, 2020. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
- Siemaszko, Corky (March 24, 2020). "Florida governor takes heat for state's slow response to coronavirus crisis". NBC News. Archived from the original on March 26, 2020. Retrieved March 27, 2020.
- "Coronavirus is killing us in Florida, Gov. DeSantis. Act like you give a damn". The Miami Herald. Miami Herald Editorial Board. March 22, 2020. Archived from the original on March 26, 2020. Retrieved March 27, 2020.
- Mower, Lawrence (March 26, 2020). "Gov. Ron DeSantis won't shut down Florida. Here's who he's talking to about that". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on March 26, 2020. Retrieved March 27, 2020.
- Evans, Jack (March 27, 2020). "900 Florida healthcare workers urge Gov. Ron DeSantis: 'Act now'". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on March 27, 2020. Retrieved March 27, 2020.
- Florida coronavirus cases pass 4000: state border checkpoints begin, vacation rentals halted Archived March 30, 2020, at the Wayback Machine by James Call, USA Today Network – Florida Capital Bureau, March 29, 2020
- "Florida surgeon general sends emergency alert to phones across the state". 10 Tampa Bay. March 28, 2020. Retrieved July 6, 2020.
- Manchester, Julia (March 30, 2020). "Governor issues stay-at-home order for South Florida". The Hill. Archived from the original on March 31, 2020. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
- Governor DeSantis issues 'stay-at-home' order for Florida Archived April 4, 2020, at the Wayback Machine Fox 13 Tampa, April 1, 2020
- Mazzei, Patricia; Haberman, Maggie (April 1, 2020). "Florida Governor, at Long Last, Orders Residents to Stay Home to Avoid Coronavirus". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 2, 2020. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
- Rodriguez, Rene (June 1, 2020). "Gov. DeSantis extends Florida's COVID-19 moratorium on evictions for another 30 days". Miami Herald. Archived from the original on June 30, 2020.
- Lyons, Caroline Glenn, David. "Florida quietly reschedules unemployment payments, confusing thousands of desperate job-seekers". sun-sentinel.com. Archived from the original on June 11, 2020. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
- "Ron DeSantis, on climbing coronavirus case numbers: 'We're not rolling back.'". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on June 17, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
- "Orlando Airport "Clarifies" COVID-19 Numbers From DeSantis". www.mynews13.com. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
- News, Eyewitness (June 20, 2020). "Quarantine for Floridians? Cuomo 'fearful' of travelers to New York because of COVID-19". ABC7 New York. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
- "DeSantis cracking down on Florida businesses not practicing social distancing, says median age of new COVID-19 cases trending in younger direction". www.mysuncoast.com. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
- "Ron DeSantis to bars and restaurants: Follow social distancing guidelines, or else". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on June 24, 2020. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
- "UCF-area bar has alcohol license suspended after employees, patrons test positive for COVID-19". WESH. June 23, 2020. Archived from the original on June 25, 2020. Retrieved June 24, 2020.
- Pacenti, John. "Coronavirus: Don't report COVID patients in ICUs, surgeon general tells hospitals". The Palm Beach Post. Archived from the original on June 24, 2020. Retrieved June 24, 2020.
- Harris, Steve Patrick, Jenese (June 26, 2020). "Florida immediately suspends alcohol sales at bars". WJXT. Archived from the original on June 28, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
- Marr, Madeleine (June 26, 2020). "A lap dance with a masked stripper? What strip clubs are like in the coronavirus age".
- Gross, Samantha (June 26, 2020). "2 in Homestead are first female Florida prisoners to die of COVID-19, after 21 male fatalities". Archived from the original on June 30, 2020.
- Elwood, Scott Travis, Karina. "Twice-a-week school among options considered for fall". sun-sentinel.com. Archived from the original on June 10, 2020. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
- "Broward Public Schools Set Reopening Date, Work on Plan for Upcoming School Year". NBC 6 South Florida. Archived from the original on June 17, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
- "Miami-Dade Enforcing Safety Rules Amid 'Worrisome Spike' in COVID-19 Cases: Mayor". NBC 6 South Florida. Archived from the original on June 25, 2020. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
- Lopez, Brandon (June 25, 2020). "Palm Beach County's mask mandate now in effect". WPBF. Archived from the original on June 26, 2020. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
- Fisola, Gwen (June 26, 2020). "Key West cancels July 4 fireworks due to COVID-19 fears. The city's mask law also got tougher". Archived from the original on June 30, 2020.
- Micolucci, Zachery Lashway, Vic (June 30, 2020). "No mask mandate for St. Johns County". WJXT. Archived from the original on July 1, 2020. Retrieved July 12, 2020.
- Villarreal, Daniel (July 11, 2020). "Florida County Commissioner Who Voted Against Masks In Hospital With COVID". Newsweek. Archived from the original on July 12, 2020. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
- 'This is no longer a debate': Florida sheriff bans deputies, visitors from wearing masks
- Marion County deputies ordered not to wear masks
- "Miami-Dade Beaches to Close for Fourth of July Weekend Over Coronavirus Concerns". NBC 6 South Florida. Archived from the original on June 28, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
- =Kelly McCleary; Melissa Alonso; Susannah Cullinane. "Miami and Fort Lauderdale beaches closing for Fourth of July amid coronavirus concerns". CNN. Archived from the original on June 29, 2020. Retrieved June 29, 2020.
- Doss, Laine (July 1, 2020). "Miami-Dade Places New Restrictions on Restaurant Alcohol Sales and Dining Room Hours UPDATED". Miami New Times. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
- Mazzei, Patricia (July 6, 2020). "As the Virus Surged, Florida Partied. Tracking the Revelers Has Been Tough". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 8, 2020. Retrieved July 8, 2020.
- CHANG, DANIEL; FLECHAS, JOEY; HANKS, DOUGLAS. "'They're the ones who have the information.' Miami-Dade waits on Florida for contact tracing". www.miamiherald.com. Archived from the original on July 14, 2020. Retrieved July 8, 2020.
- McGrory, Kathleen; Woolington, Rebecca (April 12, 2020). "Florida's count of coronavirus deaths is missing some cases". The Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on April 30, 2020. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
- McGrory, Kathleen; Woolington, Rebecca (April 29, 2020). "Florida medical examiners were releasing coronavirus death data. The state made them stop". The Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on May 2, 2020. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
- Budryk, Zack (April 29, 2020). "Florida ordered coroners to stop releasing coronavirus death data: report". TheHill. Archived from the original on May 17, 2020. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
- The COVID Tracking Project (June 26, 2020). "Florida *still* doesn't report the number of people currently hospitalized". Twitter. Archived from the original on June 26, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
- Fang, Marina (May 19, 2020). "Ousted Designer Of Florida's COVID-19 Dashboard Says She Was Asked To Censor Data". HuffPost. Archived from the original on May 19, 2020. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
- "Fired Florida Data Scientist Launches A Coronavirus Dashboard Of Her Own". NPR.org. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
- Rebekah Jones renews COVID-19 criticism. DeSantis says it’s a ‘conspiracy bandwagon’ Archived June 26, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, by Samantha J. Gross, Ben Weider and Sarah Blaskey in the Tampa Bay Times, 24 June 2020
- Tweet Archived June 25, 2020, at the Wayback Machine by Jones on 25 June 2020
- virus. "In medicine, a very simple microorganism that infects cells and may cause disease. Because viruses can multiply only inside infected cells, they are not considered to be alive". National Cancer Institute at the National Institutes of Health. Archived from the original on June 26, 2020. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
- Alexander, Bryan. "Coronavirus closes Walt Disney World, Disneyland Paris, Universal Orlando Resort". USA Today. Archived from the original on March 13, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
- Watson, R. T. (March 13, 2020). "Disney to Close U.S. and Paris Resorts Temporarily as Coronavirus Spurs Cancellations". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Archived from the original on March 12, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
- "WESH2: SeaWorld to close all theme parks due to coronavirus". Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved March 14, 2020.
- [Miami Herald: SeaWorld, Busch Gardens, Legoland in Florida close due to 'evolving COVID-19 situation]
- Nuñez, Gabriella (July 13, 2020). "Florida reports more than 12,600 new COVID-19 cases as Disney prepares to reopen more theme parks". WKMG. Archived from the original on July 13, 2020. Retrieved July 14, 2020.
- Florida, Christine Sexton, News Service of (March 2, 2020). "Florida nursing homes urged to take coronavirus precautions". WKMG. Archived from the original on May 26, 2020. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- Sandoval, Emilee Speck, Erik (March 2, 2020). "After first cases of coronavirus, this is what Florida health officials want you to know". WKMG. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- Author, A. P. (March 11, 2020). "Gov. DeSantis places limits on who can visit nursing homes amid coronavirus concerns". WKMG. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- Chang, Daniel (April 11, 2020). "Herald drafted a suit seeking ALF records. DeSantis aide pressured law firm not to file it". Miami Herald. Archived from the original on April 12, 2020. Retrieved April 12, 2020.
- Klas, Mary Ellen. "Nursing home COVID-19 list comes under fire". The Miami Herald. Archived from the original on April 22, 2020. Retrieved April 26, 2020.
- Rogers, Nicole (March 10, 2020). "UF recommends professors move classes online; this left many unanswered questions". WCJB-TV. Archived from the original on March 26, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
- "March 9 Update – COVID-19 and Online Classes". University of Florida. Archived from the original on March 12, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
- "FSU shifts from in person classes to remote classes starting march 23 for two weeks". March 11, 2020. Archived from the original on March 16, 2020. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
- "State University System Statement on COVID-19". State University System of Florida. March 11, 2020. Archived from the original on March 12, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
- Writer, Contributing. "Coronavirus update: FIU moves to remote instruction starting Thursday, March 12". FIU News. Archived from the original on March 26, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
- "USF Coronavirus Updates". March 13, 2020. Archived from the original on March 13, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
- Volz, Brianna (March 18, 2020). "UCF cancels graduation ceremonies amid coronavirus pandemic". WKMG. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
- Cutway, Adrienne (March 20, 2020). "UCF student tests positive for coronavirus". WKMG. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- Howard, Cohen (June 10, 2020). "FIU researchers think of a way to speed up a vaccine for COVID-19. Now there's a $1M grant".
- Florida, News Service of (March 22, 2020). "Florida DEP closing all state parks to the public". WJXT. Archived from the original on June 22, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
- lee, Alicia (May 4, 2020). "Miami Beach closes park just five days after reopening as nearly 8,000 break face mask and distance rules". CNN. Archived from the original on May 4, 2020. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
- Marchante, Michelle (July 3, 2020). "Can you visit Florida beaches for the 4th of July? It depends on how far you want to travel". The Miami Herald.
- R.J. Anderson, Coronavirus: MLB Opening Day delayed at least two weeks; spring training games in Florida, Arizona canceled Archived March 17, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, CBS Sports (March 13, 2020).
- Feinsand, Mark (March 16, 2020). "Opening of regular season to be pushed back". MLB.com. Archived from the original on March 17, 2020. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
- "Silver: NBA hiatus likely to last 'at least' 30 days". ESPN.com. March 12, 2020. Archived from the original on March 13, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
- NHL statement on coronavirus Archived March 14, 2020, at the Wayback Machine NHL, March 12, 2020
- "Miami Open canceled because of coronavirus outbreak". ESPN.com. March 12, 2020. Archived from the original on May 6, 2020. Retrieved April 28, 2020.
- Mealey, Jason (March 13, 2020). "AEW moves show from Rochester to Jacksonville due to coronavirus". WJXT. Archived from the original on March 22, 2020. Retrieved March 22, 2020.
- "AEW filming Dynamite & Dark in undisclosed location". WON/F4W. March 31, 2020. Archived from the original on April 4, 2020. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
- Ramos, Dino-Ray (March 16, 2020). "WrestleMania To Stream Live Without Audience Due To Coronavirus Outbreak". Deadline. Archived from the original on March 17, 2020. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
- Maglio, Tony (March 18, 2020). "WWE Splits Audience-Less WrestleMania 36 Into Two Nights". TheWrap. Archived from the original on March 18, 2020. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
- Papaleo, Dennis (April 3, 2020). "AEW taped weeks of television, Georgia state official attended this week's taping". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on April 6, 2020. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
- "'Starved for content': Ron DeSantis explains why sporting events are needed now". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on April 15, 2020. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
- Wise, Justin (April 15, 2020). "DeSantis defends labeling WWE, sporting events 'essential': 'People are starved for content'". The Hill. Archived from the original on April 21, 2020. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
- Zaveri, Mihir (April 14, 2020). "The WWE Is Now Considered an 'Essential Service' in Florida". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on June 11, 2020. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
- "Florida media: WWE was warned before, Linda McMahon promised millions to Florida". canoe.com. Archived from the original on May 11, 2020. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
- Draper, Kevin; Garcia, Oskar (April 9, 2020). "U.F.C. 249 Is Off After Requests From California, Disney and ESPN". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on June 11, 2020. Retrieved April 12, 2020.
- "Regulator opens door to UFC events in Florida amid coronavirus pandemic". News4Jax.com. Graham Media Group. April 7, 2020. Archived from the original on April 14, 2020. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
- Bianchi, Mike. "Is WWE Hall-of-Famer Donald Trump why pro wrestling is an 'essential business' in Florida?". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on April 15, 2020. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
- Maxwell, Scott. "Wrestling with absurdity: DeSantis shuts down most businesses, but gives WWE a pass". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on April 19, 2020. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
- Wolf, Colin. "Pro-Trump PAC run by McMahon pledged $18.5 million the same day DeSantis deemed WWE an 'essential business' in Orlando". Orlando Weekly. Archived from the original on April 16, 2020. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
- "Who Tells Trump When to Restart the Economy". The New York Times. April 15, 2020. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on June 22, 2020. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
- Lutz, Tom (April 15, 2020). "'We have to get our sports back': Trump says he is sick of watching baseball repeats". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on June 23, 2020. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
- "UFC returns May 9 with first of 3 cards in Florida". ESPN.com. April 24, 2020. Archived from the original on April 24, 2020. Retrieved April 24, 2020.
- "Seminole Golf Club, one of golf's most exclusive enclaves, is ready for its TV debut". Golf Digest. Archived from the original on May 15, 2020. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
- "Televised charity skins match pitting Rory-DJ vs. Fowler-Wolff set for May 17". Golf Digest. Archived from the original on May 7, 2020. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
- Pickman, Ben. "Woods, Mickelson, Brady, Manning Golf Match Set for May 24". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on May 16, 2020. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
- "NASCAR adds more races, visits to 5 tracks". ESPN.com. May 14, 2020. Archived from the original on May 20, 2020. Retrieved May 15, 2020.
- Gartland, Dan. "How to Watch AEW 'Double or Nothing'". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on June 1, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
- Deb, Sopan; Stein, Marc (May 23, 2020). "N.B.A. in Talks to Resume Season at Walt Disney World Resort". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on June 23, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
- Wojnarowski, Adrian (June 4, 2020). "NBA approves 22-team format to finish season". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on June 5, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2020.
- "Group schedule set for MLS is Back Tournament". ESPN.com. June 24, 2020. Archived from the original on June 26, 2020. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
- Wilson, David (June 11, 2020). "NHL sets start date for training camps. Here's when the Florida Panthers will be back". Miami Herald. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
- "Lightning shut down facility after positive tests". ESPN.com. June 19, 2020. Archived from the original on June 24, 2020. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
- Kepner, Tyler (June 19, 2020). "M.L.B.'s Restart Encounters an Obstacle It Can't Negotiate Away". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on June 26, 2020. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
- "Source: MLB spring sites to close amid virus worry". ESPN.com. June 19, 2020. Archived from the original on June 25, 2020. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
- "After reports of multiple positives, WWE to perform coronavirus tests ahead of 'all TV productions'". CBSSports.com. Archived from the original on June 25, 2020. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to COVID-19 pandemic in Florida. |
- COVID-19 Data Reports on Florida Division of Emergency Management website
- COVID-19 information from the Florida Department of Health
- Florida's COVID-19 Data and Surveillance Dashboard
- from the Florida Department of Health
- County COVID-19 Policies & Orders from the Florida Institute for County Government
- Local and State COVID-19 Responses and Orders from LobbyTools
- COVID-19 County-level Projections
| |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
