Reported Cases logging chart – Courtesy: Shutterstock – Image by Cryptographer
Florida will no longer publish daily COVID-19 case data moving forward and will transition to reporting weekly data as part of a “next phase.”
According to a recent statement from the Florida Department of Health, “As vaccinations increase and new case positivity rate decreases, the Florida Department of Health has moved to a weekly reporting schedule.”
The transition to reporting cases as a weekly recap comes amid the sharp decline in deaths and cases across the country with more than 50 percent of U.S. adults fully vaccinated.
Late last month, Florida’s Division of Emergency Management said that the state was transitioning “out of emergency operations into a locally-led public health effort.”
The Sunshine State’s most recent COVID-19 report which ran from May 28, 2021, through June 3, 2021, showed new cases positivity rate was at 3.6 percent and virus-related deaths were at 35.
Florida is the first state to move on from daily case reporting and the decision comes one month after state-run testing sites were handed to individual counties.
“Covid-19 cases have significantly decreased over the past year as we have a less than 5 percent positivity rate, and our state is returning to normal, with vaccines widely available throughout Florida,” Christina Pushaw, press secretary for Gov. Ron DeSantis said in an email to reporters via The News Service of Florida last Friday.
The state’s next step is yet to be confirmed, however, Florida officials are eager to move past the COVID-19 woes that plagued local economies, businesses, and families for over a year.
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William is the Managing Editor at FloridaInsider.com. His years of experience in journalism, broadcasting and multimedia include roles as a Writer and Web Producer. He graduated from Florida International University with a Bachelor of Science and Communication.