Florida Dangerous. COVID Spreading. School Starts In Two Weeks…
Positivity Rate Jumps To 16 Percent.
BY: STAFF REPORT | BocaNewsNow.com
BOCA RATON, FL (BocaNewsNow.com) (Copyright © 2021 MetroDesk Media, LLC) — Florida’s COVID situation is bad and getting worse.
In numbers not seen in months, the state logged 14,258 NEW COVID-19 cases on Friday and 148 COVID deaths on Thursday. The numbers — the latest in each category — are being released by the Centers for Disease Control. The Florida Department of Health, under direction from Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, no longer releases daily updates on COVID statistical information.
The numbers are among the worst in the country, and do not appear to be anomalies. The seven day moving death average in Florida is 51, according to the CDC. The seven day moving new infection count average is 10,454.
The positivity rate is also ascending to levels not recorded since early 2021. Florida’s seven day positivity rate is 16.4 percent.
The skyrocketing COVID counts come just days before the Palm Beach County School District restarts after an exceptionally short summer.
Students report for school on August 10th, and when they do, masks will be optional. That is bringing cheers from some parents and jeers from many others, who believe masks should be mandatory in schools where children are too young to be vaccinated.
The Palm Beach County School District, however, is currently holding firm with its plan to make masks optional, although multiple sources tell BocaNewsNow.com that the policy could change soon. Officials are waiting for new guidance from the CDC which would make a local policy shift easier to sell. The guidance, which could call for in-school mask mandates, is expected to be released soon.
