This post will be updated today, Wednesday, August 5, and through the week with the latest information on COVID-19 in South Florida.
WLRN is committed to providing South Florida with trusted news and information. In these uncertain times, our mission is more vital than ever. Your support makes it possible. Please donate today. Thank you.
WLRN staff continues to add to community resource lists, including this article on where kids and families can get food while schools are closed, and this post about whether and where to get tested for coronavirus.
The dedicated website for the Florida Department of Health, including information about symptoms and numbers of cases, can be found here.
The dedicated website from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention can be found here.
To receive WLRN's coronavirus updates newsletter on Wednesdays and Saturdays, sign up here.
QUICK UPDATES
Health Department Adds More Free COVID-19 Testing For Keys Residents
Updated Wednesday at 2:45 p.m.
The Florida Department of Health in Monroe County will be hosting free community-based COVID-19 testing events throughout the Keys next week. Appointments are required. To schedule one, please call 786-910-9764 or email TestingMonroe@flhealth.gov.
The testing will be:
- Moose Lodge on Big Pine Key, 21 Wilder Road, Tuesday, Aug. 11, from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
- College of the Florida Keys at 5901 College Road, Stock Island, Wednesday, Aug. 12 from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
- Ruth Ivins Center at 3333 Overseas Highway in Marathon, Friday, Aug. 14 from 8:30 a.m to 2:30 p.m.
- Roth Building at 50 High Point Road, Tavernier, Monday Aug. 10, Tuesday, Aug. 11 and Wednesday, Aug. 12 from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Testing is free. You must be a Monroe County resident with a valid ID, and be pre-registered with name, address, phone number, and date of birth. No walk-ins are allowed. All events scheduled are as weather permits and may be cancelled up until the time of the event.
— Nancy Klingener/WLRN News
Florida COVID-19 Cases Over 500,000, Death Total Over 7,600
Updated Wednesday at 11:15 a.m.
The Florida Department of Health confirmed an additional 5,409 cases on Wednesday. The state has a total of 502,739 confirmed positive cases, according to the state's health department.
Wednesday's update included 225 new deaths among Florida residents, increasing the statewide number to 7,627.
- WLRN News
Juvenile Justice Worker COVID-19 Cases Top 250
Updated on Wednesday at 6:17 a.m.
The number of workers in Florida’s juvenile-justice system who had tested positive for COVID-19 increased to 253 on Tuesday, while recent upticks in cases among youths appeared to slow, according to data released by the Department of Juvenile Justice.
The 253 workers who had tested positive was up from 235 in a Thursday count. In all, 113 of the 253 workers had been cleared to return to work.
As of Tuesday, 311 youths in the juvenile-justice system had tested positive, up from 306 on Thursday. The department said 159 of the 311 youths were no longer in medical isolation.
The department has taken a series of steps to try to stem the spread of the disease, including suspending visitation at juvenile-justice facilities.
- News Service of Florida
DeSantis ‘Cautious’ About Tying School Reopenings To Virus Rate
Updated on Wednesday at 6:17 a.m.
Gov. Ron DeSantis said Tuesday he would be “cautious” about linking school reopenings in Florida to COVID-19 positivity rates in communities.
The governor's remarks came a week after the Florida Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics sent a white paper to DeSantis advising that schools should not reopen unless they are in locales with a positive COVID-19 test rate below 5 percent when averaged over a 14-day period.
The pediatricians said that in many areas of Florida where districts are grappling with reopening classrooms amid the pandemic, “coronavirus prevalence will not decrease enough in the next 4-6 weeks to make the benefits of school attendance outweigh the risks.”
DeSantis told reporters Tuesday that while he was “religiously hyping positivity in March, April and May,” he now is unconvinced the positivity rate is an efficient barometer.
- News Service of Florida
